Seasonal Affective Disorder and Sleep
- Stephanie Soto
- 5 hours ago
- 2 min read
The Capital Region will not see a sunset past 6pm until March of 2026! The darker and colder days can lead to seasonal affective disorder in some folks. People with PD do have a higher rate of depression, so seasonal affective disorder may impact people with PD at a higher rate. Seasonal affective disorder is a specific type of depression that occurs in the winter months. Turns out, there may be a connection between our sleep and seasonal affective disorder. Let's review a few tips to improve sleep hygiene to lower your risk of seasonal affective disorder this winter!
Tips for improved sleep
Use bright light therapy. This involves using a lamp that mimics the sun. Some researchers say we need a total of 100,000 lux (the unit of light) or 30 minutes of direct sunlight in the morning to help establish our circadian rhythm. This is obviously very challenging to do in the winter because of the darker mornings. This is where bright light therapy can help!
Decrease artificial light in the evening. The less you use your phones and watch TV before bed, the better quality of sleep you will get. The blue light from these screens will impact your brains ability to secrete melatonin (your sleepy chemical).
Maintain the same wake/sleep time. Going to bed and waking up at the same time every day helps your internal clock self regulate. This will also help regulate cortisol and melatonin secretion which is crucial for good sleep.
Sleep in a colder, dark room. If you use night lights, consider wearing an eye mask!
Exercise! Exercise has been shown to help improve sleep quality and quantity.
Have a calming bedtime routine. Do something calming each night like take a warm shower. Your brain is programmed to form connections. The more you do the same activity before bed, the more likely you will associate that activity with sleep, the more sleepy you will get once doing that activity.
Avoid alcohol and heavy meals before bed. Drinking even 1 drink before bed will influence your sleep. Heavy meals before bed have been shown to reduce the quality of sleep, as your GI system will be working hard well into the night.
Sources: