Toronto-Centre Naturopathic Medicine is a Toronto naturopathic clinic dedicated to providing safe and effective treatment of a wide variety of health conditions using natural therapies and the principles of naturopathic medicine.
Seasonal affective disorder (SAD) is well treated using naturopathic medicine. It is a type of depression that occurs at the same time every year, most commonly in the fall and winter months.
The specific cause of seasonal affective disorder (SAD) is unknown, but genetic factors, age, the body’s natural chemical makeup and your individual circadian rhythm (the natural rhythm affecting levels of the chemicals melatonin and serotonin, and which is disrupted by the reduced level of sunlight in fall and winter) are thought to play a role.
Untreated, seasonal affective disorder (SAD) can lead to social withdrawal, school or work problems and substance abuse.
Professional healthcare should be sought out if you feel “down” for days at a time and are not able to become motivated to participate in activities you normally enjoy. This is particularly important if you notice that your sleep patterns and appetite have changed, you have a sense of hopelessness or find yourself turning to alcohol for comfort or relaxation.
Seek emergency medical care if you begin to thinking of suicide.
Symptoms of Seasonal Affective disorder (SAD)
Possible symptoms of seasonal affective disorder (SAD) include:
• Hopelessness
• Social withdrawal
• Loss of interest in previously enjoyed activities
• Anxiety, agitation and irritability
• Difficulty concentrating and processing information
• Low energy
• Oversleeping or insomnia
• Changes in appetite (e.g., loss of appetite, craving for carbohydrate-rich foods)
• Weight loss or gain
Treatment of seasonal affective disorder (SAD) at Toronto-Centre Naturopathic Medicine
At Toronto-Centre Naturopathic Medicine, the goals of seasonal affective disorder (SAD) treatment is to alleviate mental, emotional and physical symptoms, manage side effects of conventional medications and identify and address triggers of seasonal affective disorder (SAD) to prevent yearly recurrence.
Conventional treatment for seasonal affective disorder may include light therapy, psychotherapy and antidepressants (e.g., Effexor®, Paxil®, Prozac®, Zoloft®), which may have short- or long-term side effects. For this reason, you may choose to try natural treatment to possibly avoid use of conventional medications, or together with conventional medications in order to decrease dosages of conventional medications required to manage your seasonal affective disorder symptoms.
Naturopathic treatment of any chronic health concern must be recognized as a process that involves identifying specific treatment goals, a thorough understanding by your naturopathic doctor of all factors affecting your health, including physical, psychological, emotional and lifestyle factors, development of a comprehensive treatment plan and execution of that plan through periodic monitoring and adjustment.
At Toronto-Centre Naturopathic Medicine a typical approach to treating seasonal affective disorder (SAD) may be to alleviate feelings of depression using botanical (herbal) medicines or nutritional supplements, identify and address other health conditions related to decreased exposure to sunlight (e.g., vitamin D deficiency) and to identify and address underlying factors in your lifestyle (e.g., job dissatisfaction) or general health (e.g., existing mental health disorders) that may be triggering yearly seasonal affective disorder (SAD) episodes.
Where appropriate, a number of therapeutic options are available, to be used alone, or more often in a complementary fashion, including:
• Botanical (herbal) medicines
• Nutritional supplements
• Homeopathic medicines
• Lifestyle counseling
• Acupuncture
• Relaxation techniques
• Exercise prescription
References
Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research. Seasonal Affective Disorder [Online]. [cited 2010 Jan 17]; Available from: http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/seasonal-affective-disorder/DS00195.