The Holiday Blues and Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD)
Seeing a Honolulu Therapist Can Help with Seasonal Depression
The holiday period at the end of each year brings high expectations for happiness and joy, or so the marketing messages go. Seeing family and friends and spending time together are highly anticipated events – and it’s also a time of year with less sunlight. For some people, it has a significant effect.
If you feel blue around holiday time,
our therapists can offer help.
If you find yourself experiencing the “holiday blues” or Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD), seeing a therapist in Honolulu can help. For many of us, holidays can trigger feelings and memories – sometimes, they aren’t always pleasant. Unresolved issues or difficult-to-manage feelings can surface unexpectedly.
The other factor is reduced sunlight. Even though Honolulu maintains beautiful tropical weather, some of us are affected by SAD. It’s a well-understood mood disorder occurring during the times of the year with the least sunlight that can trigger depressed feelings.
Causes of SAD and the Holiday Blues
The Holiday Blues typically cause increased feelings of loneliness around the holidays because most of us associate them with a time during which family, friends, and loved ones should surround us.
However, unhappiness may occur if important people in our lives live far away or if there are unresolved issues causing rifts within the family. Holiday Blues can be brought on when we lose family, friends, or loved ones and are still processing the grief.
- Feelings of loneliness can increase on holidays
- Location can cause physical separation
SAD (Seasonal Affective Disorder) is a mood disorder characterized by depression that occurs at the same time every year. It can happen on Oahu, or anywhere there is less sunlight at certain times of the year.
- Feelings of depression
- Fatigue
- Hopelessness
- Insomnia
- Social withdrawal
Therapy Can Help SAD and the Holiday Blues
Counseling sessions for SAD and the holiday blues provide a safe, confidential space to talk about your feelings and what you may be experiencing.
Process Thoughts and Emotions – determining what’s causing you to have the holiday blues or understanding your SAD-related feelings is the first step, and our experienced therapists can guide and support you during the process.
Develop a Treatment Plan – once more is understood, our counselors will work with you in developing a personalized treatment plan.
Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) can help you shift your mindset and adjust your expectations; it’s possible you may be helped more by Dialectical Behavioral Therapy (DBT), which focuses you on the present as you let go of worries about the past or future. For SAD, light therapy (phototherapy) also may be helpful.
You Can Learn to Enjoy the Holidays More
Our therapists have worked successfully with many people experiencing SAD and the Holiday Blues. You aren’t alone in experiencing such feelings, and there are well-understood causes for them. Things will improve when you attend therapy sessions and follow your treatment plan.
If you are weighing whether to see a counselor, consider how often you have had uncomfortable feelings, how long you have been having them, and whether they are affecting your life. If they have reoccurred each year or lasted longer than several days, you may be a candidate for therapy.
A more emotionally comfortable holiday season can bring happiness and joy.
An initial appointment at Wellness Counseling is an excellent way to learn more about counseling for SAD, the Holiday Blues, and your own situation.
Counseling in Honolulu for the Holiday Blues and SAD
Our counselors in Honolulu provide a confidential, safe space and have treatment approaches that will work for you. All of our treatment plans are personalized to meet your needs and bring meaningful improvement to your life.
- Understand your feelings
- Learn ways to deal with seasonal changes
- Look forward to the holidays again
There is no doubt that SAD and the Holiday Blues are real and affect many people. But there are ways to cope more effectively and turn difficult situations into positive experiences for you and those around you. Working with a mental health professional in a psychotherapeutic setting can be helpful and affirming if you have never done it before.
When you’re ready to talk with one of our therapists in Honolulu or meet us by telehealth appointment from anywhere, call or contact us online to schedule an appointment.
