Dealing with Sads or Depression in the Netherlands? (living, work, lifestyle)

[TheDentist]

How old are you?

[tigerbolt]

Originally Posted by Ruth4Truth

OP, some Californians go through what you're experiencing just by moving to Seattle. They move away eventually.

It wouldn't be selfish to move back to CA, as long as your husband could find a job, if you're that miserable in Holland. But before you give up, try the lamp recommended by another poster, and discuss it with your doctor, as well. Some doctors prescribe an air ionizer for SAD, and have been getting good results. It puts negative ions into the air (giving the air a negative electrical charge), and imitates the feel of the outside air after a spring rainshower, or the air at the beach around the crashing surf. Have you ever noticed how exhilirating it feels to walk outside after a rain shower? It's because of the negatively-charged air (falling water causes that). Google "ionizers", and read about it.

Thank you for the support My husband works in IT, so I'm sure he would be able to find something. I just hope his degree's would be accepted here. I am happy in Holland, but just the weather makes me miserable. I will check into the lamp and try talking to my doctor about it. It is difficult to talk about since I've never heard of anyone else that has that problem. It makes me feel like something is wrong with me which I guess it's true, but it's a hard issue to admit you have some kinda of depression you've never had until now. I was googling my symptoms about I found information about SADS. I was reading stories of other people that had similar problems in Seattle or Portland.

[tigerbolt]

Originally Posted by TheDentist

How old are you?

I was a few months away from being 21 years old when I moved to the Netherlands. Right now I'm 22, but I'm almost 23 (October 29th) and my husband is 24. So we still are pretty young.

[cattledog69]

Hi Tigerbolt. Sorry to hear you have such a hard time here. I can relate to what you say since I have a very good friend who's from America, from the South, and he went through the same hard times as you do now. He's here now for five years. The first two years he just couldn't cope with the culture, the rain, the cold, the dark etc, and went back for half a year. After a half year he came back and it seemed like he made some kind of "turnaround" in his mind. Sounds funny maybe, but somehow he found a way to cope with it. He also has not much family there, like you, and he told me that he realized that he actually had not much to go back to in the States and he had more good things in Holland.
He still gets depressed from time to time during winter, but much much less than before.

I guess that realization made for a much more positive attitude and made it easier for him to cope with the ****ty weather and the dark winter days.

So, who knows, maybe you should go back for a while and find out what you really want. Some times you only know what you have/want until you miss it.

[seixal]

I went through the opposite I moved from northern France to socal. Iagree constant grey weather gets to you and you never get used to it. Sunny weather is more enjoyable even tho the heat here is too intense at times. I'm not planning on staying here but you couldn't pay me enough to go back to Paris. I would recommend to move to a more southern country or move back if you really can't take it anymore.

[overdrive1979]

Originally Posted by kikebxl

I had experienced more or less the same situation moving from Southern Spain (with a weather more or less similar to Southern California) to Brussels, Belgium, very similar weather to the Netherlands.

It's not a matter where you come from, but personal preference. I'm from central Spain which is way sunnier than Benelux, (although not so much as California or southeastern coast of Spain use to be), and I really like cloudy, dark weather conditions, so that's why I didn't feel sad everytime I moved to Belgium and to The Netherlands.

[AFP]

The contributing factors for SAD vary from one individual to another

Some contributing factors

*Circadium rhythm(decrease in sunlight can disrupt the body's internal clock)
*Seratonin level(drop in sunlight can decrease seratonin level)
*Melatonin level(seasonal changes can disrupt the balance of melatonin disrupting sleep patterns and mood)

There are also risk factors that come into play such as age, sex, family history,having a history of clinical depression and bipolar disorder, and the distance one lives from the equator.

[drro]

Originally Posted by tigerbolt

I love living in the Netherlands and think our future would be a lot better here than in California. Especially since the crime is higher and a lot of people struggle pay check to pay check living in California. In the Netherlands, I especially love how bike friendly it is here and how close everything is. The economy and health care are also great. There is just so much more benefits here than California, especially since we want children in the future.

Many consider California the best state to live in the US. Imagine how much better Western Europe is if you're from any other state which all have a lower living standard and lower quality of life than California.

But yes, the climate is terrible here. I notice around February or March the winter is getting really annoying and seems to last forever. It's a shame the worlds most developed countries and richest countries with the highest quality of life like Scandinavia, Canada, West Germany, the Netherlands, Belgium, Switzerland, and Austria are all that cold. I hear good things about Australia, it has the rare property of having a good climate and a high quality of life. If only it wasn't that far away.

[AFP]

Originally Posted by tigerbolt

Hey everyone,

A little information about me is that I lived in Southern California my whole live (19 in a half years) Until 2 in a half years ago, I moved to the Netherlands with my husband. In California I've always been happy, love going out, and just doing things. I love living in the Netherlands and think our future would be a lot better here than in California. Especially since the crime is higher and a lot of people struggle pay check to pay check living in California. In the Netherlands, I especially love how bike friendly it is here and how close everything is. The economy and health care are also great. There is just so much more benefits here than California, especially since we want children in the future.

The first year to year in a half we moved here, I was alright even though the cold climate was really difficult to me in the winter. That might sound funny since the Netherlands is considered to have a "Moderate winter" but it feels extremely cold to me being from California. Even now, I absolutely hate the winter here and never have gotten use to the cold which is something I wonder why. I thought after being here for a while, I would get use to the climate and adjust, but I am just as miserable as the first day. But that isn't the worse part for me. The past year in a half, something has been seriously wrong with me. When the sun is shining and not too cold, I'm happy, love being out, and everything is wonderful. But as soon it is dark, cold, and rainy, my mood changes drastically. I get extremely depressed, want to sit inside and do nothing, feel like crying, just want to sleep, feel like I have no self confidence, don't want to be near anyone, just want to be alone, have no energy at all, just want to sleep, want to eat more junk food, miserable, Fatigued, lash out, and just want to give up on everything. It really is horrible when I start feeling like that, especially since I can't control it and I just can't get myself out of that mood when I'm like that. But I just want to know why this suddenly happened and how I can make it a little better. Could this be caused by the climate change? Because I was always use to living in a climate that's always sunny? Then I'm suddenly in a place that is rainy/cloudy/cold 9-10 months of the year? Could that have possibly caused it?

It's really sad since I would love to stay in the Netherlands, but I'm not sure how to handle this. I also have become obsessed with "climate" and a desperate need to go somewhere warm to live or even vacation. When I get like that, I have a desperately to get out of here and go anywhere else. That's not how I really feel though because I enjoy being here. Right now it's only September, so the weather is starting to get pretty bad here. It has been raining, cloudy, and gloomy for over a week. The symptoms have already started to appear and it's been difficult for me to handle. I'm terrified since I know it's going to get a lot worse when November-December arrives. I've tried using a Light therapy box, but it hasn't helped much. I would love any opinions, suggestions, or even experience from someone that has gone through a similar thing

1.Increase the amount of time you use the light box.
2. Do you exercise? Cardio exercise increases the serotonin level if you can incorporate that into your daily routine it could help.
3. Keep a fixed sleep schedule as much as possible.

Points to consider people in California struggle with SAD as well some individuals don't experience symptoms related SAD until after age 35.

[mym]

i think what you are going through might have something to do with your situation. i dont know how, but id suggest finding an expat lady group, and when you feel comfortable, share what you are feeling. i bet its more common than you think.