I have minor episodes of depression... 1) The week before school starts 2) On my birthday I also have really bad seasonal depression but this year, it's kicking in early. Combine that with my gender dysphoria and you have me at my most toxic. How do I cope?
Are you taking any vitamin D supplements for your seasonal depression? I've only been taking them a short time but they seem to be helping my seasonal issues. They also make sun lamps. I haven't looked into those personally because I have a feeling they'd be out of my price range, but I've heard good things about them.
The lack of sun/light causes your body to produce more melatonin, leaving you feeling tired/depressed. So I would say try to get some outdoor light as much as possible. Inside the house, open the curtains. And if not enough, turn on some lights, lamps. It helps. Also, without the sun, your body doesn't produce vitamin D. Low levels of this vitamin causes depression. So you can try adding vitamin D softgels to your daily routine. Start with smaller doses and then you can increase up to around 4000IU-5000IU for maintenance if everything goes well. You can talk to your doctor about a vitamin D test also. He will prescribe it to you if your levels are too low. But keep in mind, nobody has optimal levels of vitamin D, even in the summer. So taking this vitamin is important for everyone.
I've heard that garden growing lights can be used to treat SAD. Don't know specifics but you could start by looking here. Got to be cheaper than a specialized lamp. Full-spectrum light - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Trace, no. I haven't met with a therapist ever at all. To everyone else, maybe I will try some vitamin D/natural light/spectrum lamps. Thank's guys.