How to Overcome Year-End and New Year Depression and Holiday Blues?
Daily Sunlight Exposure and Half-Bath Are Helpful
A, a young adult starting their career, became more depressed as 2023 began. A said, "It's nice that the new year has dawned, but on the other hand, worries and concerns about how to spend it came first," adding, "At the beginning of the year when I should be happy, I don't even want to go outside and feel lethargic."
As the new year of 2023, the Year of the Black Rabbit, dawns, people make new resolutions and spend happy times with family and acquaintances. However, some start the new year feeling depressed due to the cold weather making their whole body shrink and relative deprivation. Let's learn how to overcome 'year-end and New Year depression,' 'holiday blues,' and 'winter blues,' a type of seasonal affective disorder that appears in winter.
Increase Serotonin Levels by Getting Sunlight
The reason depression worsens especially in winter is because the time spent seeing 'sunlight' decreases. Due to seasonal characteristics, the days are shorter and nights longer, and cold weather reduces the amount of going outside. At this time, activity levels decrease, lethargy increases, and people tend to stay at home.
If you do not get sunlight and do not move, the level of the happiness hormone 'serotonin' decreases. Serotonin is a neurotransmitter that functions to uplift mood. It is actively secreted when the day is bright, so to overcome depression, you should first get sunlight. Conversely, when it gets dark, melatonin levels increase, and this hormone causes anxiety, nervousness, and depression.
Therefore, it is good to go outside once a day to get sunlight or walk for about 30 minutes during the day. If going outside is difficult, looking at the sky indoors to calm the mind and body or making the interior as bright as possible is also a method.
Take Half-Baths and Absorb Enough Vitamin D
Half-baths are also effective. Warm water raises body temperature and helps blood circulation. It also activates the parasympathetic nervous system in the brain, during which serotonin secretion is promoted. If half-baths are burdensome, enjoying foot baths is an alternative. Relieving accumulated fatigue and relaxing muscle tension with warm water can have effects similar to taking antidepressants.
A sufficient supply of vitamin D is also important. If vitamin D is deficient, bones and muscles weaken, making inflammation and pain likely. Vitamin D is also related to depression as it affects mood hormones like serotonin. Therefore, if vitamin D is lacking, emotional fluctuations may worsen or sensitivity may increase. It is good to frequently consume foods rich in vitamin D such as milk, soy beverages, margarine, salmon, and shiitake mushrooms.
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