Combat Winter Depression With Home Daylighting

Getting outside more and making the most of the natural source that is the sun is the best way to keep away those post summer blues.

 

By Larry Bohan on 15 Aug

 

2018

After a long, record-breaking British summer of

 

scorching hot temperatures, autumn is begining to slowly creep up on us.

Our days will gradually

 

get shorter and shorter, and

 

before we know it the days of leaving and returning for work in darkness will have arrived. Hosepipe bans and choruses of ‘it’s coming home’ will soon be

 

but a distant memory.

While most of us are able to just make a hot chocolate,

 

throw a blanket over ourselves and begin counting down the days til next summer, for some people dealing with the changes in weather, ecology and amount of daylight is not nearly as easy.

Seasonal affective disorder (SAD), or 'winter depression' as it’s also known, is a

 

medical condition which the NHS estimates affects 1-15 people in the UK between

 

September and April every year.

 

Symptoms

 

range

 

from low energy levels, to low self-esteem and anxiety.

The signs of SAD and ways of combating it are not nearly as known as they should be, leading

 

sufferers to not realise what

 

they’re experiencing is something that

 

if not properly addressed will likely never go away.

In this blog we look at SAD in greater detail and discuss how the natural, underused powers of daylight can thwart winter depression by exploring different ways of harnessing the wonders of the sun and incorporating it into everyday living.

What Are The Symptoms Of SAD?

Seasonal affective disorder is a form of depression that is most prominent during the darkest

 

months of the year; December, January and February.

The NHS lists common symptoms as:
•

 

 

 

Sleep problems

 

•

 

 

 

Lethargy
•

 

 

Overeating
•

 

 

 

Depression
•

 

 

 

Loss of motivation and ability to concentrate
•

 

 

 

Social problems
•

 

 

 

Anxiety

 

•

 

 

Loss of interest in normally pleasurable activities
•

 

 

 

Loss of libido
•

 

 

 

Weakened immune system
•

 

 

 

Mood changes

The NHS

 

says the biggest

 

cause of SAD in people is reduced exposure to sunlight that occurs during the shorter autumn and winter days.

Experts believe that this lack of sunlight might stop a part of the brain called the hypothalamus working properly, which may affect levels of melatonin (hormone that makes you sleepy), serotonin (mood, sleep and appetite hormone) and your body’s internal clock.

SAD is existent in both the northern and southern hemispheres, but

 

is very rare in people living within 30 degrees of the Equator, where daylight hours are long, constant and extremely bright.

How Do You Treat SAD?

Unlike with most other medical conditions, the NHS do not recommend any kind of drug or therapy

 

as a remedy. No, what the NHS suggests is

 

to

 

get more natural sunlight in your life.

There are a variety of ways

 

of doing this, the easiest and most obvious

 

being to simply get outside more often, whether that be enjoying the last remnants

 

of

 

daylight

 

in the garden

 

after work or by making

 

more of the great outdoors on weekends.

But with so much of our time now increasingly spent indoors, at home and at work, exposure to sunlight when sitting at our desks or binge watching TV shows on our sofas, is even more important.

 

This is why it is a smart idea to ensure your home

 

is designed in a way which makes the most of natural daylight and is not too dependent on artificial lighting. This will provide

 

a long-term solution with long-term benefits for

 

your health and well-being.

With the sun and warm weather not expected to go down on 2018 just yet, there is still plenty of daylight to be enjoyed and now is as good a time

 

as ever to

 

get daylighting your home with roof windows or rooflights in preperation for the bleaker months ahead.

How Can I Add More Daylight?

While

 

all habitable rooms should already have integral vertical windows

 

installed to provide daylight and ventilation, roof windows and rooflights are renowned for

 

being able

 

to provide three times as much daylight as their more upright counterparts.

Daylighting has always been one of the key motivating factors

 

for homeowners when it comes to designing a home extension or loft conversion. This motivation

 

is now as strong as ever with so many more of us now

 

a lot more conscious

 

of how our homes

 

affect the environment.

While it's

 

true that lightbulbs are often the only affordable means of keeping our homes lit during

 

evening

 

and night, many households depend on them to illuminate rooms during the daytime too, even

 

during the summer months

 

when there is an

 

abundance of natural light to be found outside our walls. Roof windows and rooflights can totally

 

eliminate the need for artificial lighting during the afternoon and evening in many cases.

Pitched roof windows fit into the roof

 

at an angle

 

that best utilizes

 

the sun

 

so that more light is reflected into the room below.

 

Depending on size and quantity, flat rooflights

 

can shower rooms with

 

sunlight no end to brighten up the area below, as well as making

 

it feel

 

bigger and more enticing.

The added light and warmth that roof windows and rooflights bring to

 

a home not only

 

immediately improves living standards, but

 

also helps homeowners save a significant amount of

 

money on energy bills in the long run.

If your patio doors or french doors are not allowing enough daylight into your home as you’d like,

 

bifold doors

 

can make the world of difference,

 

improving

 

the look and feel of your home both

 

when open and closed.

 

Read a testimonial on our aluminium bifold doors

 

from a recent Sterlingbuild customer

 

to find out more.

Whichever room in the home

 

you want to add natural light to, Sterlingbuild has a daylighting solution to help combat those winter blues and get you enjoying life all year round. See our window recommendations for different rooms below for further inspiration or visit our Extension Hub.