Seasonal depression - are you happier after moving somewhere warmer? (house, high school)
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Hi everyone! I'm hoping to spark up a discussion and hear from anyone who has moved to improve their climate and surroundings and hear if that substantially changed your quality of life. Every winter I find myself feeling depressed, lethargic, uninspired, grumbling about every little thing including scraping ice off my car, worse traffic, limited things to do, sickness, etc. I've wanted to live somewhere scenic and warm my whole life but so far careers, marriage, etc. have kept me in the cold Midwest.
A little background about me:
-in my late 20's
-grew up in the Midwest and have lived in the Midwest my whole life, currently live in Chicago suburbs
-enjoy outdoor activities including hiking, biking, four wheeling, paddle boarding, walking my dog, boating, having barbecues, drinking my coffee on the patio, just anything involving fresh air
-currently considering moving to the west coast (Arizona, California, etc. - don't need recommendations on places at this point, doing lots of research and visiting )
-I am sure I have SAD and have tried remedies including more exercise, vacations every winter, crystal salt lamp, vitamin D, etc. and still experience winter depression
So here's what I want to hear from you! Did you make the move to a better climate and if so, has it improved your outlook on life and quality of daily life? In what ways? Did you give up something such as career advancement, proximity to family, etc. to make the move and was it worth the sacrifices you made?
Last edited by Sunseeker111; 01-24-2018 at 06:32 AM..
For clarification on the poll, "better" climate can be relative - if you prefer cold climates, did you leave a hot place to move to a colder one and did that affect your level of happiness? And vice versa. The title of the thread is more specific to my own preferences but please vote and weigh in no matter what your preferences are!
Reverse for me. I moved somewhere colder and LOVE it. There's so much to do in all 4 seasons. It's so cool that I could go to my local park and downhill ski instead of driving 12 hours to the mountains and hoping there's gonna be snow and spending 100 bucks to ski for a day. Its so cool that's there's so many places to ice skate and most of the season the ice is so thick that trucks can drive on it. A snowy night is so peaceful and perfect for cuddling.
I love gardening in spring and seeing everything explode in colour. I love summers here as they're warm and sometimes hot but not oppressive. Fall is the best with the changing leaves, going apple and pumpkin picking and sweater weather.
Btw I don't know how many people in Phoenix barbecue in the summer. It's too damn hot many people just spend all day in AC. Even in Texas we grill and barbecue in summer because while it's hot, it's not Phoenix, Arizona hot! It's like even if you like the heat, most of Arizona is something else. I like the cold but I am not moving to Alaska that's overkill lol.
This may be an extreme example being as Phoenix is known as the Valley of the Sun and has probably the most extreme sunshine/hot temperatures of any major metro in the U.S., but when we lived there a few years ago, some people actually experienced summertime SAD because of the relentless, blazing, beating down sun from morning to late evening for days and weeks on end and the inability to do things outdoors due to the potentially dangerous heat.
I am someone who might argue that I suffer from winter SAD here in Michigan but I was also feeling plenty depressed in Phoenix in the summertime for the above reason. Believe me, the sun gets to be just as boring, life limiting, and depressing as the clouds and snow. When I would get up in the morning and break a sweat and burn my feet on the sidewalk just putting the dog out at 7 am, I knew I was going to be holed up in the house that day, much like I do here when I get up in the morning in January and have to step in snow and freeze unless I put on a heavy coat putting the dog out at 7 am. (although I have to add that we do have plenty of days in January where there is no snow at all, such as today). Both extremes, both depressing, IMHO.
I realize that all of the Sunbelt doesn't get as hot as Phoenix, but take Florida, there you have the humidity that never quits, which I also find depressing and life limiting.
Bottom line: I think that any extreme weather conditions can be depressing and life limiting, hence why places like San Diego and Orange County, CA where they don't normally experience vast extremes in either direction are so crowded and prohibitively expensive.
I get depressed during the winter (but never before the holidays), typically by the beginning of February. I’ve learned over time that if I take a week vacation to somewhere sunny and warm in January, that helps me a lot, and gets me through the rest of the winter. I just need a break from the cloudy winter here. When I get older I will likely spend more of the winter in warmer weather. I’ve always wondered if some snowbirds suffer from depression during the winter months, so they head south.
I get depressed during the winter (but never before the holidays), typically by the beginning of February. I’ve learned over time that if I take a week vacation to somewhere sunny and warm in January, that helps me a lot, and gets me through the rest of the winter. I just need a break from the cloudy winter here. When I get older I will likely spend more of the winter in warmer weather. I’ve always wondered if some snowbirds suffer from depression during the winter months, so they head south.
Kansas is cloudy in the winter? I'd imagine their winters are like North Texas' winters in terms of cloudiness, in other words, not that cloudy. I don't consider Minnesota winters cloudy at all so I would think Kansas, being further west, would be kinda sunny too. Idk. Texas is super sunny in winter so is Minnesota.
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I have SAD and moved to Tucson,AZ after my youngest graduated from high school. I lived there for about 18 months. We moved back to the Midwest because my husband developed allergies.
Moving to AZ was like night and day for me. I felt fantastic, like a whole new person. Moving into the sun was amazing and made a huge difference in my quality of life. Yes it does get hot in the summer, but I enjoyed outdoor activities in the morning and evening. I miss the person I was in AZ and I really resent having to live in the gray Midwest.
There are other western states that get plenty of sun if AZ and CA do not work for whatever reason. Research and visit and hopefully you will find the place that works best for you.
Believe it or not, having too much sun can cause depression, too. Its like reverse SAD. In PHX that averages 320 days of sun a year, it becomes cumbersome, especially in summer. If you don't like being couped up indoors, PHX might not be the place. Yes, its sunny almost all summer, but the heat is deadly and drives people indoors. You either sit in a/c, or in a pool. Outdoor activities are limited during afternoon hours, as the heat is too intense. Cars are easily 250 degrees inside sitting out in the sun. Everything you touch burns you. A/C runs non-stop. The majority of the public stays indoors. There are many nights where our low temps are around 100 degrees at times. These are things to consider. You should look at places like Prescott, AZ, which is much cooler, but just as sunny.
Hi everyone! I'm hoping to spark up a discussion and hear from anyone who has moved to improve their climate and surroundings and hear if that substantially changed your quality of life. Every winter I find myself feeling depressed, lethargic, uninspired, grumbling about every little thing including scraping ice off my car, worse traffic, limited things to do, sickness, etc. I've wanted to live somewhere scenic and warm my whole life but so far careers, marriage, etc. have kept me in the cold Midwest.
A little background about me:
-in my late 20's
-grew up in the Midwest and have lived in the Midwest my whole life, currently live in Chicago suburbs
-enjoy outdoor activities including hiking, biking, four wheeling, paddle boarding, walking my dog, boating, having barbecues, drinking my coffee on the patio, just anything involving fresh air
-currently considering moving to the west coast (Arizona, California, etc. - don't need recommendations on places at this point, doing lots of research and visiting )
-I am sure I have SAD and have tried remedies including more exercise, vacations every winter, crystal salt lamp, vitamin D, etc. and still experience winter depression
So here's what I want to hear from you! Did you make the move to a better climate and if so, has it improved your outlook on life and quality of daily life? In what ways? Did you give up something such as career advancement, proximity to family, etc. to make the move and was it worth the sacrifices you made?
I moved from Minneapolis to the DFW metro area a little over 4 years ago. Although I loved living in the twin cities, the winters made me miserable and irritable. I would dread the mention of state fair because that would mean that the summer is coming to an end. We moved solely for weather and the only regret I have is that I didn't do it sooner. I was not much into bundling up and doing winter activities but I do much better with heat. I can mow the lawn here in the middle of a 100 degree day without any issues. I would definitely recommend that you move to place that makes you happy. Just go to the place with an open mind and accept the differences between your current city and the new city.
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