Over coffee this morning, I allowed myself to page through the seed catalogs. They’ve been piling up since December. I wait until January to browse and dream of the new year’s garden. It’s part of my strategy to get through the winter – seed catalogs now and order by the end of the month. In early February, I start planting indoor plants that need lots of time to develop before planting out. By mid-February, I get my taps and buckets ready for maple syrup. In March, I’m busy making syrup, planting seeds, and cleaning up outside ( weather permitting). Throughout, I continue writing my blog posts for intellectual stimulation.
These things form a strategy for stopping my seasonal affect disorder from taking over my life. Full spectrum grow lights, music, exercise, blogging, and family time with my wife, children, and pets all form a plan. I’ve learned that the SAD experience is contingent on my actions to counteract it. Accept the conditions of life offered by the SAD and live a miserable and depressed life through the winter. Or take active steps to counter it, and get through the winter a bit fatigued from the activity but feeling fulfilled.
From talking to others with similar conditions, I’ve learned that you need to develop a plan that works for you. I know one woman who compulsively knits, cooks, writes music and corresponds with others via snail mail letters. Her plan would fail for me – just on the knitting. And while she’d love the maple syrup, hiking out in the snow to fetch in buckets of sap would make her unhappy.
You have to come up with things you like, tolerate, keep your mind active, and keep the body moving.
As in other things, Buddha was correct: it doesn’t matter how slow you go as long as you keep moving.
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Lovely! 😀
P.S. If you’re seeing these comments, replying in the reader worked. Thanks again, Lou!
I am seeing them!
Yay!
I have a close relative with SAD and she is in horticulture (professionally) so her routine not only mimics your own (especially seed catalogs and starting plants indoors) but she has the solace of a gigantic, well lit, mist filled greenhouse where hundreds of thousands of plants are propagated. She was drawn to this livelihood early on and has since established it was partly SAD that drove her. Your post is so interesting to me, given what I’ve observed in her life. Thank you.
I follow a similar strategy in summer. It works. Hang in there.
SAD was unheard of where I was born until I moved to Vancouver, Canada. The season is mostly overcast. This affected me. Full spectrum light helps me weather the storm. Medication is miraculous, it was a slow progress. Buddha is right.
When I was growing up it did not “exist” as a diagnosis.
You have a good plan there, Lou. I have full spectrum lights inside to help with that. It’s been necessary for so many years. January is my clutter clearing month which keeps me moving. We haven’t been able to get outside this week. Snow and ice everywhere. Buddha was right. You have to keep moving or you are done. I love seed catalogues even though I have nowhere to plant or grow. They are so hopeful. Keep at it.
You do need a plan to get by, and I know that you keep busy with your fabric arts too.