SAD (seasonal affective disorder) in rainy/cloudy part of Oregon

[redrebel66]

The only thing that will get you through the long, long, long wet winters is by keeping some cold steel in your mouth.

http://nobullfourwheelclub.com/dsarms_e0.gif (broken link)

[Metlakatla]

Originally Posted by redrebel66

The only thing that will get you through the long, long, long wet winters is by keeping some cold steel in your mouth.

What does this mean?

[redrebel66]

Originally Posted by Metlakatla

What does this mean?

You know, hold the barrel in there and hope it stops raining before you have the guts to pull the trigger.

That is how I cope anyways.

[Metlakatla]

Originally Posted by redrebel66

You know, hold the barrel in there and hope it stops raining before you have the guts to pull the trigger.

That is how I cope anyways.

I thought it might be something like that. I find that taking wild Alaskan salmon (sockeye preferably) supplements helps some...when I remember to do so.

[trixie09]

I'm popping in to this older thread, because I find the SAD discussion to be so interesting. I was a transplant to the Pacific Northwest 9 years ago. I thought.. "I love Rain! this will be great!" And it was for the first two years... but for many people with SAD or an aversion to 9 months of gray skies and drizzle, it takes three years to fully lose the novelty of the new area, and feel the effects of lack of sunshine. Many people have SAD who have grown up in the PNW, and others who grew up where it was sunny, develop it after moving here.

But here's the thing that people seem to misunderstand. I have SAD, and I can tell you that it's not about disliking the rain. I love rainy days. It's not about finding things to do, or dancing in the rain, or putting on music. SAD is an actual condition, it's not like an attitude adjustment. Your body's circadian schedule gets completely derailed by the lack of seratonin production. It's not something we can snap out of of, and not something that you can control by having a good attitude.

You have three choices: take drugs for it. use a lightbox. or move. I've told myself that I refuse to live somewhere that I have to take Prozac just to get through 9 months out of the year. Or sit in front of a light box. I think it's nature's way of telling you that you don't belong there. Because SAD comes from our caveman days and has not disappeared in everyone, evolutionarily, it's probably best to move further South.

And word of caution to people that move to the PNW thinking that they "love rainy days!" It's not the same. It's not the rain. It's the gloom and the dark for weeks and weeks on end. Some people can handle it and love it. Some people don't prefer it, but they can totally be busy with other things and consider it something they put up with for the benefits, and then others with SAD feel literally sick because of it. You can't know until you're in the PNW for at least three years...

[Storm00]

I am moving out of Salem after the new year. My family and I are moving to Gilbert, Arizona. I can handle the heat if it means sunshine for more than just 3 months out of the year. I have lived in Salem since 2004 and the 9 months a year of grey skies gets to me more and more each year. When I first moved here, I loved rain and storms and even grey skies - because I had only experienced them in moderation before. Once I moved to a place where majority of the year was filled with this rainy & grey-sky weather, I started to like it less and less every year, until after the 3rd or 4th year, when I started absolutely hating it. I have been miserable here in Salem for the last 2 years - not *only* because of the weather, but that's a big part of it. When my whole family has to continually take Vitamin-D supplements because of the lack of sunshine...it's time to move!