Improving Seasonal Affective Disorder Treatment through Research

Seasonal Affective Disorder (Winter Depression)

One of the astonishing facts to emerge from recent research is that most people in the northern United States and Europe experience seasonal changes in mood and behavior, also known as seasonality. When the dark days of winter approach, people with seasonal depression feel slowed down and have difficulty waking up in the morning, are tempted to snack more on those holiday foods and find the pounds begin to creep on even when valiantly trying to diet, find it hard to focus at work or in their relationships, feel down in the dumps or, worse still, really depressed.

In its most marked form, affecting an estimated 6 percent of the U.S. population, seasonality can actually cause a great deal of distress and difficulties in functioning both at work and in one's personal life. These estimated ten million Americans are said to be suffering from seasonal affective disorder or SAD, a condition now widely accepted by the medical community and the public at large. Another 14 percent of the adult U.S. population is estimated to suffer from a lesser form of SAD, known as the winter blues. Though these people are not usually affected severely enough to seek medical attention, they nevertheless feel less cheerful, energetic, creative, and productive during the dark winter days than at other times of the year.

Seasonal Affective Disorder self-evaluation

Most people are seasonal, though some are more so than others. In fact, over 90 percent of all those who responded to a survey conducted in Maryland, about thirty-nine degrees north, reported that they felt some difference in mood, energy, or behavior with the change of seasons. The Seasonal Pattern Assessment Questionnaire (SPAQ) is a frequently used to determine seasonality. Question 2 of the SPAQ is reproduced below.

	No Change	Slight Change	Moderate Change	Marked Change	Extremely Marked Change
A. Sleep Length
B. Social Activity
C. Mood (overall feeling of well being)
D. Weight
E. Appetite
F. Energy Level

Your Score

To derive your overall seasonality score, calculate your score for all six items, for a possible range of 0 to 24. An average overall score ranges from 4 to 7 points. If your score is 8 to 11, you may fall into the category of subsyndromal SAD, also known as the "winter blues" or "February blahs." If your score is 11 or more, you may well suffer from SAD.

For more information about our studies, please contact us by calling (301) 770-7375 or by filling out the Contact form at right. For some studies, we offer Self-Assessment questionnaire which are available by clicking on the button above.

Finally, the pages in our Participating In A Study section above contain much more information about how studies work and what you will experience if you qualify to participate in one.