Winter depression

[Polisman]

I had a friend was a postie for 20 years. During the winter he would have the same routine everyday, get up at five, I'm to work at 6, 3hrs to do his round and when he was finished he would go back to kip till 2pm. This meant he was really only getting maybe 2-3hrs of daylight per day.

I think the toll of this heavy routine eventually did for him, and he died from a lymphoma at the age of 46. Sleep and sleep patterns and access to normal daylight are imo essential to good health and staving of degenerative diseases like cancer and stroke /cardiac problems. Whenever I've been deprived of either I've always had a negative reaction on my general health.

There has to be some connection between light levels and good physical health also.

[mnichols]

I don't like the winter and need to get outside. If the weather is too bad for cycling then a couple of short walks with the dog at first and last light, a potter in the garden at lunchtime and a trip to the sports centre in the evening keeps me just about sane, but I'm counting down the days until spring. Planning my summer tours also helps.

[Polisman]

I don't like the winter and need to get outside. If the weather is too bad for cycling then a couple of short walks with the dog at first and last light, a potter in the garden at lunchtime and a trip to the sports centre in the evening keeps me just about sane, but I'm counting down the days until spring. Planning my summer tours also helps.

I plan my holidays around the 15th January, Which is supposed to be the most miserable day of the year!

[horizon]

Tomorrow is the shortest day of the year, tonight (AFAIK) the longest night. After that it's downhill all the way! (or should that be uphill?)

[gbnz]

Tomorrow is the shortest day of the year, tonight (AFAIK) the longest night. After that it's downhill all the way! (or should that be uphill?)

Don't care, it's going to get better and better and better

Within 14 weeks of this date last year, spring had been around for weeks, I had a tan and was on my second short tour . Though have to admit I do seem to have bypassed the festive spirit already (Nb. Walked out of a family dispute yesterday, after yr's helping out, why bother )

[Polisman]

The one thing I do like about new year is knowing that in 8 short weeks the light returns and the temperature starts to rise back up to *shorts on weather!

[Audax67]

On the radio yesterday I heard someone who had moved to Norway and was trying to cope with only 6 hours of daylight a day. Not fun.

Anyway, I usually get depressed at this time of year because:

- the cardiologist doesn't want me to ride in < 5°C and my GP added the words "including wind chill". This stops me riding in < 2°C (tut tut)
- re black ice, he also mentioned that diabetic bones don't heal well
- on the days that it's >5°C it's usually (a) raining (b) blowing a gale or (c) both.

But the main reason is

- trying to reconcile buying Christmas presents with the end-of-month credit card bill. See under "irresistible force/immovable object".

[saudidave]

I'd lost both my parents by the age of 22. I was OK for a couple of years and then developed severe depression and anxiety that I couldn't shake off. I took a job in Saudi Arabia when I was 29 in 1982, which had a massively positive effect due to a combination of a huge tax free income providing security (replacing that of the bank of mum and dad) and sunshine adding melatonin. It cured the depression whist I was there but it returned every winter when I returned to the UK - November till March.

I discovered that exercise relieved it and when it came on I took to the bike for a ride and in 2-3 days it was gone. I also discovered that a winter holiday in Tenerife in November/December provided a cure too. I seemed to grow out of it when I was about 40 and I've never had it since - I'm 67 tomorrow.