This time every year I usually undergo my annual bout of Winter Depression. The days are shorter and then daylight savings time puts the final nail in my coffin. Unfortunately for me, I am not a farmer up at dawn to feed the chickens. Instead, I usually hang with the night owls. I need my extra hour of daylight in the evening. Once that hour of light is taken away from me, I plunge into months of difficult sadness.
Seasonal Affective Disorder. SAD. A stupid acronym; a boring condition.
These days I use bright daylight spectrum bulbs to give my mind that missing light. It has made such a great difference. Also, I had a reminder that I set last year go off in the middle of October. I was prepared.
Then Winter came early. Snow. Rain. Overcast skies. The sunlight didn't stand a chance. This morning I woke up in a small panic. The house was messy (which induces Depression), the sky was dim, I was supposed to start my diet again today, and I could feel Depression nipping at my heels.
As I mentioned before: Boring. I knew that if I didn't strike hard, I would lose the day, and even the week. Once Depression settles in, it is hard to evict.
Instead, I cleaned the kitchen, ate, climbed stairs for 5 minutes, danced for 7, and did 150 sit-ups. Then I got busy, made phone calls, dropped a forgotten book off at my daughter's school, had an impromptu meeting with her principal, came home, did something important that I can't recall at the moment, took the kids to the library, and came home and cleaned out the shed.
No Winter Depression.
One could call this a victory, but I am absolutely exhausted. I hate to think what I'll have to do to keep Depression at bay tomorrow. Times like these I am so grateful for the hyperactive part of ADHD.
And now to write in my novel. I have at least another four hours before I will be able to shut my eyes and lie motionless for a few hours.
Follow me on Twitter for my ADHD escapades at @SplinteredMind or my novel writing project over at @DouglasCootey. And if you're a glutton for punishment you can friend me on Facebook as well.
