PRESENTED BY AMAZON!!
Axios Finish LineBy Mike Allen and Erica Pandey and Jim VandeHei ·Nov 06, 2023
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Smart Brevity™ count: 346 words … 1½ mins. Copy edited by Amy Stern.
1 big thing: Fighting the winter blues
Illustration: Natalie Peeples/Axios
As the days get shorter, you could start feeling the winter blues — or worse.
- Why it matters: Although feeling some sadness during the darker months is normal, the American Psychiatric Association says millions of U.S. adults deal with something more serious: seasonal affective disorder (SAD) or seasonal depression, Axios’ Carly Mallenbaum reports.
What’s happening: A reduction in light exposure can change the balance of brain chemicals — like serotonin (which affects mood) and melatonin (important for sleep) — and disrupt the body’s circadian rhythm.
- By the numbers: According to a recent APA poll, two-thirds of adults say they notice at least one of these behavioral changes when the season shifts to winter: They sleep more, feel fatigued or depressed — or both.
The “most important thing” to pay attention to during the fall and winter is sleep, says APA president Petros Levounis.
- Mood disorders can lead to sleep loss, and the inverse is also true: Even a single sleepless night can interfere with the brain’s ability to regulate emotions.
- Waking up and going to bed at around the same time — even on weekends — is an important part of good sleep hygiene, Levounis says.
Going for walks in nature can also alleviate winter blues, Levounis says.
- They’re especially helpful for people who commute in the dark and otherwise wouldn’t get exposed to as much body clock-regulating sunlight.
- Bonus points for anyone who can walk among trees. Studies show strolling in the park is particularly good for your mental health, perhaps because we’ve been socialized to associate nature with calmness, says Levounis.
A MESSAGE FROM AMAZON:
“Amazon helped align my passions to my career”
After college, Adrienne struggled to find a career in UX design.
The solution: Adrienne got a job at an Amazon fulfillment center and joined one of the free, on-the-job training programs
that led to a UX design job with Prime Video.
-
“Before Amazon, design was just a hobby,” she said.
Finish Liners tell us they love taking advantage of winter’s beauty. Check out this photo from reader Ralph W.
- “My favorite place to walk is outside my door in southwest Montana. My dog Apollo and I take two 45-minute walks daily up the mountain outside our home and back.
- “These walks are essential to my well-being as they re-energize me and calm me.”
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