hargy or an overall sluggishnessduring the day, as if everything is an effort. Sufferers of SAD have difficulty coping withlife as a result of these changes. They have feelings of despair, misery, anxiety,hopelessness and, in severe cases, have suicidal thoughts. SAD can lead to familyproblems and cause sufferers to avoid company and participation in social activities.An estimated 10 million Americans have SAD. Women are 4 times more likely tosuffer from SAD than men. The average age most people begin to suffer from SAD is 23. As a person gets older, they are less at risk of suffering from SAD. People with otherdepressive illnesses and people that live in the northern latitudes are also more susceptibleto SAD. About 4 to 6 percent of the general population actually experience SAD, andanother 10 to 20 percent experience a sublevel of the SAD symptoms, usually referred toas “winter doldrums.” People with the winter doldrums are bothered by the return ofSAD-like symptoms each winter, but they remain fully functional.As Seasonal Affective Disorder became more recognized by scientists, they cameup with an idea to treat it. Scientists at the National Institute of Mental Health had anidea: If people get depressed when the days get darker, why not just give them more light?They decided to treat a SAD sufferer by building a 2-foot by 4-foot metal box filled withbright fluorescent bulbs, covered with a plastic screen. They asked the patient to sit infront of it for three hours before dawn and three hours after sunset every day. Three dayslater the patient was out of his depression. Since then, scientists have come further in theirlight therapy treatment, using brighter lights and shorter treatment times.Light therapy involves exposure to intense levels of light under controlledconditions. The recommended light therapy system consists of a 10,000 lux light boxdirected toward the patient at a downward slant. The patient sh...
