Since SAD is a subtype of depression, SAD symptoms are the same as the symptoms of major depressive disorder (MDD). However, these symptoms only occur seasonally and typically during the late fall and winter months.
What is SAD?
Seasonal affective disorder (SAD) is a type of depression that’s related to changes in seasons—SAD begins and ends at about the same times every year. If you’re like most people with SAD, your symptoms start in the fall and continue into the winter months, sapping your energy and messing with your mood.
Symptoms of major depressive disorder:
- Feeling depressed most of the day, nearly every day
- Feeling hopeless or worthless
- Having low energy
- Losing interest in activities you once enjoyed
- Having problems with sleep
- Experiencing changes in your appetite or weight
- Feeling sluggish or agitated
- Lack of sexual energy (libido)
- Having difficulty concentrating
- Having frequent thoughts of death or suicide
In addition to the symptoms of MDD, season-specific symptoms of SAD can also include:
- Hypersomnia (excessive sleepiness or drowsiness)
- Overeating
- Weight gain
- Craving for carbohydrates
- Social withdrawal or you feel like “hibernating”