How to win autumn blues? We usually associate it with seasonal cooling and a decrease daylight hours, but only the second has been scientifically proven. So add more light and movement to your daily schedule. We asked psychiatrist Pavel Alfimov about the features of the dark period of the year and ways to survive it without losses. “When the days become so short that I have to leave for work while it’s still dark and return at dusk, it’s like I’m hibernating,” admits 27-year-old Alina. “I have a hard time forcing myself to get up in the morning, and during the day I feel sleepy. Everything annoys me, and the most unpleasant thing is that I eat something all the time.” Alina’s feelings in the autumn-winter period are shared by about 10% healthy people V different countries. Once upon a time in the old days, this depressed state was called autumn blues, today it is called seasonal affective disorder (SAD) or winter depression. “Most of us don’t even notice seasonal mood changes, but some people stop coping with their usual stress. They feel sad and depressed, easily offended and worried about trifles. However, psychological manifestations may not be as noticeable as physiological ones - lethargy, increased appetite and drowsiness. By the way, with classic depression, the patient, on the contrary, loses sleep and eats worse. If these symptoms are observed for at least two weeks, we can talk about seasonal disorder." Why is the mood unstable in autumn? According to statistics, SAD is most often affected by women who live far from the equator. Indeed, in the northern latitudes in the autumn-winter period, the day becomes noticeably short, and with a lack of sunlight, in fact, is what causes the disorder. “We feel the change of seasons first of all... with our eyes,” explains the expert. - In autumn, the amount of bright light entering the retina of the eye decreases, and paths stretch from the retina to the suprachiasmatic nucleus in the hypothalamus - the main generator of circadian rhythms. This nucleus controls the release of melatonin, the sleep hormone, and synchronizes the work " biological clock» organism. During the dark months of the year, melatonin is produced in excess, which is why we feel lethargic and overwhelmed even during the day.” But serotonin, the “joy hormone” responsible for mood stability, which we need during the day, is produced much less. All this disrupts our circadian (daily) rhythms and disrupts our work nervous system. In young people, due to the greater plasticity of their brains, circadian rhythms are even less stable, and this, apparently, is the reason for their special vulnerability. According to one theory, the homeland of our ancestors is the savannah, the African steppes, that is, latitudes closer to the equator. “In general, for a person to live in northern latitudes is not very physiological. There is a theory that the homeland of our ancestors is the savannah, the African steppes, that is, latitudes closer to the equator. And our brain is evolutionarily configured to perceive a lot of light. In fact, it is adapted to life in constant summer conditions.” Hence the conclusion: the higher the latitude, the higher the risk of SAD. This fact, by the way, is clearly confirmed by data from a large-scale study conducted in the USA. Analyzing the well-being of residents of the northern and southern states, psychologists recorded only 2.8% of residents in sunny Florida with symptoms of SAD, while in Alaska the figure was 8%. This issue has not been studied in Russia, but it can be assumed that the difference between the so-called Anapa and Norilsk will be approximately the same.

Is it dark or cold? Having recently left behind a rainy and cold summer, we speculate that the lack of the usual heat and the transition from spring straight into autumn may exacerbate the symptoms of seasonal depression. Is it so? “The effect will not be as noticeable as we tend to think. Although it was quite humid and cool this summer, overall the length of daylight was satisfactory, as it should be in summer.” In most cases, seasonal disorder is treatable “Of course, we are more comfortable living in a warm place, but the signs of seasonal disorder are associated precisely with a decrease in daylight hours, and not with a drop in air temperature,” the expert continues. - Therefore, in principle, bad weather can create an additional unfavorable background, but most likely it will not change the number of seasonal depressive episodes. Most often, seasonal fluctuations in mood and well-being do not poison our lives so much as to require the intervention of a specialist. But if you can’t work at all, don’t want to see anyone, take psychoactive substances and feel complete hopelessness, you should consult a psychiatrist. The fact is that in some cases, SAD may be another (seasonal) episode of one of the serious diagnoses - recurrent depression (major depressive disorder) or bipolar disorder. Cheer up Of course, not everyone is lucky enough to live near the equator. But there are ways to ease the symptoms of the autumn blues. Turn up the light. A person with seasonal mood swings needs 10 times more light than others. Unfortunately, it is impossible to stock up on ultraviolet light “for future use” - the sun’s rays do not have a cumulative effect. Therefore, from the beginning of September until the end of winter, it is necessary to carry out insolation. It's best to walk on fresh air in natural light. If this is not possible, turn on the fluorescent lamp every morning for 30–60 minutes. According to Nassir Ghaemi, a professor of psychiatry from Boston, this duration is most effective. Take vitamin D and melatonin. The skin also absorbs sun rays, under their influence the body produces vitamin D, which acts as an antidepressant and helps with sleep disorders. Its source for ultraviolet deficiency is fatty fish and nutritional supplements containing vitamin D. Melatonin preparations help regulate disrupted circadian rhythms, but they should be taken after consultation with a doctor. Move. Do at least 30 minutes a day for aerobic exercise - cycling, running, swimming, dancing. Movement saturates the body with oxygen and increases overall tone. In most cases, seasonal disorder is treatable, and it is especially helpful to combine different ways, combining insolation with cognitive psychotherapy sessions or medication. You shouldn’t count on it going away on its own. Unless, of course, you plan to move to southern latitudes.

Exercises to combat the autumn blues Cognitive-behavioral psychotherapy helps well in the fight against seasonal disorder. Patients with depression have extremely negative views about themselves, the world around them and their future. These ideas manifest themselves in the form of negative automatic thoughts that are so fleeting that a person does not have time to realize them and accepts them as the truth. Clinical psychologist Yulia Zakharova offers an exercise that will help you notice these thoughts and distance yourself from them. If your mood has deteriorated, remember when it started. What happened? For example, a situation: you remember how you dropped your smartphone. Try to understand what thoughts this situation caused, what you thought before your mood deteriorated. How is the situation related to your personality, the attitude of others towards you, and forecasts for the future? For example, thoughts: “It’s always like this for me! Everything is falling out of hand. If only I had bought the case on time! Clueless!” Try to think critically about these thoughts. Think about what facts confirm your thoughts and what facts contradict them? Do these thoughts help you cope with the problem or, on the contrary, increase your feelings of hopelessness? For example, analysis: “I actually rarely break anything. Here's this smartphone and grandma's mug. Self-recrimination only makes me upset; it doesn’t help me be more careful.” Try restating the thoughts in point 2 in a more realistic way. Avoid self-deprecation, generalizations (everything, always, never), and shoulds. Figure out what you can do to improve the situation. For example: “Sometimes I can break things, just like other people. I’ll buy a case and try to be more careful.”

In autumn, people often complain about a bad mood that seems to arise for no reason. Many associate a dull, gloomy state with the time of year, in their opinion, “the nastiest of the year.” They even came up with a name for this problem - autumn blues, which you need to get rid of as quickly as possible.

Causes of the blues

The main reason for the autumn blues is your own mood. Many people set themselves up for the blues even on hot, warm days, sighing every now and then: “Autumn is coming. The nasty blues will come again.” That is, negative programming of the body occurs for the arrival of autumn.

Such people, unfortunately, do not see anything good in autumn. Cold mornings, rains, dampness, dark evenings - these are the standard descriptions of autumn.

Set yourself up for the positive, and you will unexpectedly discover another autumn - a fabulous beauty that changes outfits almost every day. No matter how much we love summer, so much bright colors, as much as Indian summer gives us, even it cannot give!

In autumn it is much easier to breathe, because the air is not as dry and hot as in summer. Walking on an autumn day is much more pleasant than in the summer heat.

The abundance of vegetables and fruits is another plus of autumn.

Of the minuses− short days, long evenings, cold, sometimes damp weather. But even in these disadvantages you can find advantages. In the fall, we are at home more, which means we can leisurely take care of things that have accumulated for a long time: tidy up the closets, wash everything that we couldn’t wash in a hurry in the summer. If the autumn blues really set in, start doing some repairs. Such a choice will leave no time at all to look gloomily out the dark window. Often time flies by so quickly during this activity that you can only come to your senses on the eve of the New Year!

Vitamins can help the body get rid of the autumn blues. Of course, on cold days you want nourishing food, but if you focus only on fatty meat products and sweet confectionery, you won’t be able to cope with the blues. A bad mood is guaranteed, plus a set of extra pounds. It has been proven that people gain 1 or 2 kg of weight in the fall.

The reasons for a bad mood often lie in poor digestion. Almost everyone who complains about the autumn blues also complains about hair, bad dream. They agree to take pills for good stomach function, for good sleep instead of adjusting your diet.

Eat more vegetables and fruits, treat yourself to a variety of salads, but remember the compatibility of foods. Incompatible products cause the formation of toxins in the body that negatively affect health, which does not improve Have a good mood.

Don't mix fruits and vegetables. Do not prepare dishes that involve the use of fruits, vegetables, or meat at the same time.

Fruits are digested much faster than other foods. Therefore, having often eaten such a mixed dish, after about half an hour fatigue suddenly sets in, headache, bloating. After all, fruits have already been digested, but vegetables and meat have not yet, as a result, toxins begin to be produced that poison the body.

There are a lot of apples in autumn . This is a very valuable healthy product, rich in vitamins, which will help get rid of the autumn blues. But remember that an apple eaten immediately after a meal will cause harm instead of benefit, since it will be digested faster than other food and the process of fermentation and gas formation will begin.

Make it a rule to eat an apple at least half an hour before meals. Get rid of the wrong habit of eating fruit for dessert. Eat them as a snack or before a meal.

Do not indulge in fatty foods, as they are the main culprit of bad mood and drowsiness. Avoid sausages and sausages, and do not drink sweet carbonated water.

In the fall, fruit drinks made from frozen berries or lemon, and herbal teas will come in very handy.

Many people harvest herbs and other greens in the summer and freeze berries “for the winter.” So, if the autumn blues have taken over, take out your supplies and cheer up the body, this will help you quickly overcome the dull blues.

Treat yourself to good chocolate, marshmallows, marmalade.

Fighting the blues with dried fruits

Eat dried fruits . . If you eat 10 dates daily, you can fully meet the body's need for copper, magnesium, sulfur, and get half daily norm iron and about a quarter of calcium. Dates are a powerful detoxifier that removes heavy metal salts from the body.

Dates can immediately replace fruit, drink, food, sweetness and medicine. To get rid of the autumn blues, this is just what you need.

Take dates to work, eat them instead of a snack or afternoon snack and get in a good mood.

Important! If you eat dates, do not eat other dried fruits on this day, as excessive consumption may cause weight gain, as dried fruits contain sugar.

Should know: If after eating you suddenly feel sleepy and feel tired, it means that the food was not right. Review your diet, remove foods that have a bad effect on your well-being.

Fresh air is our everything!

Ventilate the room! The cold season is not a reason to stop allowing fresh air into the room. Often autumn drowsiness, and with it the blues, fall on people due to lack of oxygen and fresh air.

Be calm about constant access to fresh air. Often people who catch colds and get sick are people who do not ventilate their rooms and are afraid of drafts. No need to sit down open window, freeze. Beds, sofas, and armchairs should not be placed right next to the window or balcony, although this is now very welcome modern designers. Sleep with the window slightly open in any weather. Sleeping in a stuffy, unventilated room contributes to heavy sleep and awakening, and poor health in the morning.

Try to go to bed not too late. Lack of sleep negatively affects your well-being and mood. Psychologists advise preparing some surprise for yourself in the evening for an easy awakening. It could be a good new face cream, a new blouse, perfume, even a cake for breakfast (sometimes, without fanaticism)!

The cause of the autumn blues can also be the lack of warm shoes and clothes. Take care of your wardrobe in advance so that when cold days arrive, you are dressed for the season. Of course, beautiful clothes and shoes will add to your mood, in which you want to “show yourself in public” as soon as possible!

You can get rid of the autumn blues . , lack of sleep, poor health. Eat more vegetables and fruits, ventilate the room, treat yourself to all sorts of pleasures, walk in the fresh air and don’t be mopey!

Photo: Vladimir Nikulin/Rusmediabank.ru

It's autumn, it's gloomy, cold and damp outside. From entertainment for ordinary people All that's left are books and a TV (if you can afford to go to Mexico in mid-November for sunny Beach, you don’t have to read any further), going to the cinema and pizzeria on weekends, chatting with friends, usually online. Of course, it will come very soon New Year, and your mood will improve dramatically, but in the meantime, psychologists are giving us advice on how to overcome the autumn blues (depression is a disease and can be treated exclusively with medication, after seeing a doctor). I thought, what would happen if we really put all these tips into practice and would the autumn blues remain with us?

Advice one. Be sure to walk outside for an hour before bed every day. It’s better not to do some household chores or watch a TV series, but be sure to go for a walk.

The respected author who gave this advice probably lives somewhere on the shady streets of Italy, where it is warm, light in the fall and there is some body of water nearby (for example, Lake Garda). Or maybe the author of this advice lives in cozy cottage in Sochi and before going to bed he wanders around his yard, well fenced with a high fence.

Now let's transfer this advice to real life. You return from work at 7-8 pm, it is already pitch dark and sparse, and in some places, large wet snow is cheerfully sprinkled on your chilled top. Having prepared dinner at home, having checked the lessons with the tomboys, around 11 pm you scream:
- It's time for me to go for a walk! I have !

And having sent your terrified husband to watch TV, you begin to get ready to go for a walk. Dressed in a hat and a padded jacket (so as not to be robbed), taking with you an ax and a bat (in addition to a good mood, I would also like to stay alive), a bottle of vodka (even if you, like me, don’t drink at all), to keep warm, tying a lantern on your forehead (it’s still dark) you, sniffling loudly, go out for a mandatory walk before going to bed. And then you gloomily cut circles around the house, lightly swinging your ax (so as not to freeze), dimly illuminating the sidewalk at your feet with a trembling flashlight. An hour later, exactly at midnight, like Cinderella, you return home. And so every day.

The next day you read in the News, “on Mira Street, apartments have fallen in price four times, because of a strange person with an ax walking around the yard at night.”

The psychologists turned out to be right: there will be no trace of the blues, either for you or for your neighbors.

Go to any social place and talk to new people: share your problem and let them help you

You go to a convenience store and start sharing. First, go up to the seller sitting at the checkout and, having pushed aside the still live queue, get stuck on her ears.

I think I have . My body aches, my teeth itch, I’m in a bad mood and have a rash on my chin. It seems to me that no one loves me.
- Why love you, you tattered cat! - shout the already tired, stunned and sweaty customers at the checkout. - Go for a walk for an hour before bed! - they are already yelling, at the limit of their vocal capabilities.

The psychologists turned out to be right: not a trace remained of the blues, and the man stopped drinking from the bus stop and left for Tibet, because he was sure that he had come face to face with the devil himself.

: especially those who have been on a diet before

This is advice! What a sight for sore eyes! In short, you go to the store and buy everything that you couldn’t afford before: cakes, buns with jam, sweets, pies and donuts. Then come home and sweep it all away in one evening, loudly slurping with pleasure. Your mood will noticeably improve, especially when in a week your face is covered in acne from eating sweets, in two weeks you won’t fit into any jeans, and in a month your teeth are falling out. And just in time for the New Year you will arrive in all your glory: a cheerful, cheerful barge with bad skin and two remaining front teeth.

The psychologists turned out to be right, what an autumn blues it is now, now it’s just a tin looking at you from the mirror and eating another bun.

Smile all the time

Morning, gloomy tram passengers are snuffling and coughing, the conductor is selling tickets, there is a crowd, and you are smiling all the time, i.e. the entire hour and a half from the moment you entered the crowded tram until the moment when even the driver ran away from the empty tram to call you an ambulance for psychiatric help.

Having explained to the cheerful doctors that you are simply “positive,” you enter the office and, without stopping to constantly smile, go to the boss. He, his face turning purple, scolds him for his work, and you smile. He is already shouting with good obscenities: “Stop smiling!”, and you are smiling. The boss fell under the table and wheezed from a heart attack, and you, still smiling, call the doctors.

The psychologists turned out to be right, everyone has fun: you, your colleagues, but not the boss, and since no one likes management, everyone remains happy.

Autumn blues- how to deal with it and what to do so as not to fall into deep depression on New Year's Eve?

November has already arrived, the time of autumn blues has come. The Runet groans with melancholy and sadness. Articles on psychology vying with each other to give useful tips, and it seems to you that there is nothing better than taking time off from work, wrapping yourself in a warm blanket, listening to old sad songs and watching old sad films.

1. I feel sad, well, I’ll go for a walk...

The option of spending time at home seems cozy only at first glance. Give it a couple of days, no more, and then on the dullest and least sunny days. Scientists claim that the state of melancholy and apathy is a completely physiological symptom caused by a lack of sun, which contributes to the production of “ happiness hormone» serotonin. And if there’s not a cloud in the sky, feel free to go out into autumn. Dress for the weather and walk until your inner child wakes up inside, who doesn’t care about rain or snow, who is happy just because it exists.

2. Lemons, tangerines and other bananas

Passion for consuming foods containing antioxidants, in fact, also has a completely physiological need to reduce oxidation in the body, which leads to various diseases and early aging. Treat yourself to a variety of colorful fruits and exotic vegetables. And lift your spirits, and natural vitamins get enough, and slow down aging.

3. It’s great that we are all here today...

Communicate at this time as much as possible, but with those who bring joy and evoke positive emotions. And even if in the evening you don’t feel like leaving the warm cozy home in the autumn gloom, force yourself to do it, perhaps your Friends We also fell into the blues. The joy of communication is the greatest thing that will remain in the memory of the passing autumn, and in the near future it will allow you to temporarily forget about the fact that you need to mope.

4. I see the goal, I believe in myself...

Autumn is the time when we have not yet cooled down from summer emotions, goals and tasks that we solved against the backdrop of summer, sun, warmth and joy. What’s stopping you from setting yourself a new task and solving it with persistence and hard work? There is time before the New Year, and a new activity will perfectly distract you from bad thoughts and sad films.

5. And laugh...

Be sure to watch - funny programs, funny videos, and read - new jokes and humoresques. The same psychologists claim that you can deceive the brain if you force yourself to smile. Your brain, having received the command to purse your lips in a smile, will think that you are actually having fun and will give the command to produce the appropriate hormones.
And, most importantly, remember that all this minor is temporary. December will come, the earth will be covered with fluffy White snow, supermarkets will deliver fresh tangerines and preparations for the New Year will begin in full swing. And then summer is just around the corner!

8 effective ways to combat the autumn blues

“A sad time is a charm from the eyes!” - this is what the classic wrote in one of his poems...

It’s a charming time for reality: the leaves turn yellow in the parks and gardens, everything becomes golden and variegated, it would seem, a time of joy and harvest…. But apparently, nothing has changed in our urban society since the time of the classic. And for many of us, this “time” becomes really dull. Autumn depression is not an uncommon visitor for modern city dwellers. So what is the reason? How to defeat this scourge?

Causes of depression in autumn

“Smart men” interpret that the cause of all this misfortune is a decrease in daylight hours. It's hard to disagree with them. The world around becomes dark: gray, wet. There are fewer reasons for joy at this time; you want to plunge back into summer, where it is sunny and warm. Scientists even came up with a term - “seasonal affective disorder”, popularly known as the blues, and they also came to the conclusion that “this is not an invention of sad, lazy people and not happy with life,” but in fact a serious illness that in our latitudes can affect everyone.

If, having read this far, you recognize yourself and feel that sometimes the view outside the window makes you mope, do not despair, your misfortune is not a misfortune at all. There are a great number of ways to get away from this condition or at least mitigate it. Below I describe the most effective of them.

Get brighter!

You've rightly heard about color therapy, where colors are used for treatment. In our case, try to dress brighter. Bright colors lift your spirits and seem to take you out of resonance with the weather outside the window, but you can argue: “black is slimming!” But this is not your case. Still, during depression, take control of your will - wear bright colored clothes at least from time to time.

Healthy sleep and proper routine are the key to health

It’s true that in the old days people said: “He who gets up early, God gives him.” And you follow the example, go to bed earlier, rest 8 hours in a row. Get up at dawn.
Strict adherence to this rule will give you energy for the whole day. There will be a desire to create something. And gradually your depression will disappear.

CAREFULLY!!! Sweet

Indeed, in a state of depression, when a person is very prone to developing addictions, be especially careful with all kinds of pastries, cakes and other flour products; it is quite possible to simply become addicted to sugar. You don’t also need weight problems, do you?

Bitter chocolate. As a way to sweeten the blues

Yes! It is bitter that not everyone loves, and sometimes it turns out to be in vain. Eating a couple of slices of dark chocolate is very effective method cheer up. Keep in mind that milk chocolate or chocolate ice cream is not suitable for blues.

Omega-3 foods can help you

Eating fatty fish (anchovies, sardines, mackerel), flaxseed oil, hemp oil and butter walnut It helps and sometimes eliminates almost any seasonal disorder because it contains Omega-3 fats. Which maintain the level of neurotransmitters - serotonin and dopamine. Very important substances in the fight against depression.

So remember, by leaning on fish, you are strengthening not only your bones, but also your mental state.

Oatmeal, oranges, greens... We “refuel” the body with folic acid

In addition to everything written above, in order to finally get rid of depression, it wouldn’t be a bad idea to eat oatmeal for dinner, for example, or for breakfast, green beans lentils, and eat an orange on the side. These foods are rich folic acid, and she also lifts the mood.

We go to the gym... Sport is the best medicine

Don't let the cold weather make you lazy... Get up and take a walk. Better yet, do some physical exercise - all this will raise your tone and improve your mood, because various physical exercise wonderfully relieve stress - a frequent companion of seasonal depression.

Go visit

Remember the old cartoon about Winnie the Pooh? How did he visit guests? So you don’t sit within “four walls”, ask for a visit. This is the most effective way. The company always lifts the mood. But here you will have to overcome yourself, because during depression we avoid communication... Don’t give in to this feeling. “Feet in hand” and away from the blues.

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