[medicalfox]

I know people with bipolar ll face depression, but what about people with bipolar 1 and the winter blues? Is that part if our spectrum or is SAD diagnosed?

Also, do people with bipolar ll face depression randomly throughout the year or just in winter? I only have depression in the winter and mania almost any time of the year besides fall.

[AnxietyGirl916]

I'm not sure about the SAD, but I have BP 2 and my depression is random. The cycles are the same though. Hypo, baseline, depressed, baseline, hypo...wash, rinse, repeat.

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[medicalfox]

That must be so hard. I couldn't imagine random bouts of depression throughout the year. Is it worse in the winter or is it the same throughout the seasons?

[BipolaRNurse]

I have bipolar 1 and SAD. A mild depression will kick up briefly in the late summer due to changes in the angle of the sunlight, but it's very manageable; it's usually during January and February that the real seasonal depression kicks in. The rest of the year I tend toward mania.

[Trippin2.0]

Random everything BP2. Depressions and hypos all year round, with a whopper approximately every 3 or 4 months. Winter doesn't make it worse, but I used to get super hypos when spending long periods of time in the sun.Too afraid now and will avoid sun this summer as hypo is now dysphoric.

[medicalfox]

Originally Posted by BipolaRNurse

I have bipolar 1 and SAD. A mild depression will kick up briefly in the late summer due to changes in the angle of the sunlight, but it's very manageable; it's usually during January and February that the real seasonal depression kicks in. The rest of the year I tend toward mania.

I suppose I have SAD too (I knew I did, but I wasn't sure if that was normal for bipolar 1). How do you treat SAD for people with bipolar 1? My therapist recommend a light box, but I read that it can trigger mania in people with bipolar 1 :/

[medicalfox]

Originally Posted by Trippin2.0

Random everything BP2. Depressions and hypos all year round, with a whopper approximately every 3 or 4 months. Winter doesn't make it worse, but I used to get super hypos when spending long periods of time in the sun.Too afraid now and will avoid sun this summer as hypo is now dysphoric.

I always figured winter made people with bipolar 2 worse. Does that mean people with bipolar 2 don't have SAD and can function like they normally would year round?

[Victoria'smom]

We have full spectrum lights through out our house so we live in a giant light box. It's those blue lights at the store not the yellow.

[Spiritbird]

I often get suicidal late jan early February. I have a large light box I start to use by late October. I have bipolar1 and was told by my old pdoc sad was likely.

[medicalfox]

So it's okay to have a light box for SAD even though you have bipolar 1? I'm worried about mania.

Originally Posted by medicalfox

I always figured winter made people with bipolar 2 worse. Does that mean people with bipolar 2 don't have SAD and can function like they normally would year round?

The seasons have no effect on my moods, but I live in a place with a lot of sunlight. My BPII depression can come on at any time of the year, hypos are few and far between so yes I can function as I normally would, year round regardless of the seasons.

[medicalfox]

I wonder how it is for people living in colder climates. The winters where I live are brutal and in the winter it's about 30°F daily for several months. It's super cold, sometimes snow, and less sunlight. Is it the decrease of sunlight in winter that causes SAD or is it winter itself?

Originally Posted by medicalfox

I wonder how it is for people living in colder climates. The winters where I live are brutal and in the winter it's about 30°F daily for several months. It's super cold, sometimes snow, and less sunlight. Is it the decrease of sunlight in winter that causes SAD or is it winter itself?

My understanding was that SAD was caused by the decrease of sunlight, not the temperature.

[fiddler32]

I would say 80% of my year is spent in depression. I have noticed my depression tends to get deeper during winter. I've bought one of those light therapy lamps to try out this winter...

[Trippin2.0]

Originally Posted by medicalfox

I always figured winter made people with bipolar 2 worse. Does that mean people with bipolar 2 don't have SAD and can function like they normally would year round?

I have no idea if that's true for all of us, but can't recall any bp2 folk being weary of seasons affecting their bp directly. I do remember quite a few bp 1 folk posting about specific seasons triggering episodes though.
Maybe some of us are directly affected but because we have cycles all year round its not easy to make the connection to a season...

[medicalfox]

Originally Posted by Supanova

My understanding was that SAD was caused by the decrease of sunlight, not the temperature.

Okay that's what I thought. So that means if I can successfully do light therapy this year, winter won't be so bad for me. Maybe I won't go into psychosis and mania this winter too

I joined a gym this year and I'm hoping it helps me during the winter and going to a yoga studio next door. I want to be functional this winter for once.

[A Red Panda]

Originally Posted by medicalfox

I wonder how it is for people living in colder climates. The winters where I live are brutal and in the winter it's about 30°F daily for several months. It's super cold, sometimes snow, and less sunlight. Is it the decrease of sunlight in winter that causes SAD or is it winter itself?

30F??

Sorry. I'm from a very Northern climate - we get between -40C and -50C, which is -40F and -58F. At the darkest time of year the we get 7 hours between sunrise and sunset. At the lightest we get about 17 hours.

I've only been here for two years so far, and I have bp2. Season's don't affect my mood significantly - SAD is an individual thing and not associated with BP1 nor BP2 I believe.

I have depressions and hypomanis at random. There is zero rhyme or reason to them, although I do tend to get triggered by Christmas and my birthday (in August). So I tend to go into a depression around those times.

((And MM - how can you tell which lights are full-spectrum? Do they just say full-spectrum? I got overwhelmed in the light bulb aisle the other day!))

[Andysmom]

I have BP2 and SAD. My depression always worsens in Jan and Feb. I got a light box but it doesn't help much. A trip to FLa to visit my sis is a better answer!

[AnxietyGirl916]

Originally Posted by medicalfox

That must be so hard. I couldn't imagine random bouts of depression throughout the year. Is it worse in the winter or is it the same throughout the seasons?

For me it's definitely worse in the winter, even though I live in sunny California.

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[medicalfox]

Originally Posted by A Red Panda

30F??

Sorry. I'm from a very Northern climate - we get between -40C and -50C, which is -40F and -58F. At the darkest time of year the we get 7 hours between sunrise and sunset. At the lightest we get about 17 hours.

I've only been here for two years so far, and I have bp2. Season's don't affect my mood significantly - SAD is an individual thing and not associated with BP1 nor BP2 I believe.

I have depressions and hypomanis at random. There is zero rhyme or reason to them, although I do tend to get triggered by Christmas and my birthday (in August). So I tend to go into a depression around those times.

((And MM - how can you tell which lights are full-spectrum? Do they just say full-spectrum? I got overwhelmed in the light bulb aisle the other day!))

Alaska or Russia? I'm very sensitive to the cold so I could never live that far up north regardless where that is. Yeah I probably have SAD and I should had taken my therapist more seriously about it. I shrugged it off since I thought it was a bipolar thing, but now I realize it's quite significant. I will ask her about what I can do to prevent my winter blues this year.

[Phoenix_1]

I've been wondering about this too. I have bp2 and the absolute worst time of year for me is from November - February. If I get depressed in the other seasons it's milder and this summer, it was a mixed episode.

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My most recent diagnosis is bp2. I also have SAD and my psychiatrist told me to start using my light box in the morning beginning September. He claims "it's only light" and there's no such thing as using it too much, but I've read elsewhere that too much light can cause hypomania or mania in bipolar folks.

[Phoenix_1]

Originally Posted by medicalfox

I joined a gym this year and I'm hoping it helps me during the winter and going to a yoga studio next door. I want to be functional this winter for once.

I found that going to the gym after supper keeps me awake at night.

Yoga is excellent. I did yoga for 35 years, and you can modify the routines for the time of day. You can do more active poses in the mornings and then at night do more relaxing poses.

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I just read through an article on the mcman website about SAD and he says work with your dr when using a light box. I posted the link on another thread somewhere around here

[emgreen]

I'm BP 1 and suffer from SAD, as well. I, too, live in the northern climes & depression hits hard after the shift in daylight savings time through February. I use a light box, and my pdoc prescribes a low doe of AD in the winter months to combat SAD. Like anything else, my pdoc & I monitor things to make sure I don't go into a manic or mixed state. I'm fortunate to have a pdoc willing to see me on a more regular basis during these months. I wish I could say the light box and low-dose AD always work, but the winter is always a struggle for me despite these measures. I do, however, use both treatments & have been able to get through many winters doing so.

If you're interested, light boxes can be very inexpensive. Examples can be found here on Amazon:

Amazon.com: light boxes for sad