5 Tips for Managing Summer Depression in Recovery

When people picture seasonal depression, they may picture winter depression, which affects people during winter months and is caused largely by a lack of exposure to sunlight.

But summer depression, a form of seasonal affective disorder (SAD), strikes people during the warmest time of the year. People in addiction recovery who experience this type of depression may find it difficult to focus on recovery goals.

Here’s what to know about summer SAD, including causes, symptoms, how it can affect your recovery and tips for managing it.

What Is Summer Depression?

Summer depression is another form of seasonal affective disorder. About 5% of U.S. adults experience SAD, with symptoms lasting about 40% of the year.

Mostly, SAD strikes during colder months, beginning when weather turns colder and days get shorter, and lasting until weather turns warmer again.

However, a small portion of people with SAD will experience the reverse — they will get summer SAD and see depression symptoms during summer months.

Disclaimer: People who experience depression symptoms year-round or not as a result of weather conditions are likely facing major depression or another mood disorder. 

How Can Summer Depression Affect Addiction Recovery?

Like other mental health conditions, summer SAD can become a relapse trigger for people in recovery.

Alcohol and drug addiction are mental and behavioral health conditions. When coupled with another mental health condition (known as a dual diagnosis), like summer depression, staying the path of recovery is that much more difficult.

Some ways that summer depression could lead to a relapse include:

• Using opioids or alcohol to numb the pain of depression
• Disrupting your focus on your recovery goals
• Robbing you of the desire to go to treatment
• Causing you to withdraw from your support system

What Causes Depression in the Summertime?

The causes of summertime depression aren’t fully understood. This is partly due to lack of research.

While winter depression is caused mostly by a lack of serotonin due to less sunlight exposure, this is typically not an issue in the summer.

Some possible causes of summer depression include:

• Disruption to daily routine, especially sleep patterns. People with mental health disorders rely heavily on routine for healthy coping. Summer brings disruptions to daily schedules, including eating, sleeping, and everyday obligations.
• Negative feelings around body image. Societal pressures to diet, exercise more, and lose weight particularly in the summertime can make this season a difficult time for people with body image issues.
• Heat, humidity, and pollen. The limited research on summer depression shows that increased temperatures can be so unpleasant that people experience depression symptoms. The bright light is also a factor and a known precursor to mania. Finally, some studies have also shown a correlation between high pollen counts and increased depression (largely in people with allergies).
• Financial troubles. Summer can bring a lot of added expenses, from vacations to increased childcare costs, that can heighten a person’s stressors and contribute to summer SAD.

Risk factors don’t cause summer depression, but can increase your risk for developing it. Risk factors for summer SAD include:

• Being a woman 
• Having a family history of SAD, depression, bipolar disorder, or other mood disorders
• Substance abuse (drug or alcohol abuse)
• Having other mental disorders

Symptoms of Summer Seasonal Depression

If you’re worried you or a loved one may be battling summertime SAD, knowing the signs of this disorder can help.

Summer depression symptoms may begin in late spring and last from early summer to late summer; winter SAD symptoms tend to begin in late fall to early winter and last through to early spring.

Both summer and winter seasonal depression are marked by a sad mood and a decrease in feelings of pleasure. However, that’s where the similarities end.

Signs and symptoms of summer depression include:

• Persistently low mood or mood changes
• Repressed appetite, which could lead to weight loss
• Insomnia or other sleep troubles
• Lack of energy
• Feelings of restlessness or agitation

In contrast, winter SAD is largely marked by overeating and oversleeping/weight gain.

Keep in mind that both winter SAD and summer SAD have symptoms of depression that overlap major depression, depressive episodes of bipolar disorder, and other mood disorders.

That’s why it’s important to get professional help if you or a family member are experiencing these symptoms.

Tips for How to Deal with Summer Depression

If you’re having a hard time with your everyday functioning, or experiencing disruptions to your life due to depression symptoms, it may be time to see a mental health professional.

In the meantime, here are some practical tips for managing your summer SAD:

1. Avoid Isolating Yourself

All types of depression can lead people to isolate themselves or withdraw from social situations. This could be due to a lack of energy or a belief that you’re burdening others.

When you feel this way, try speaking to someone you trust about these feelings and why you’re experiencing them. 

2. Keep Your Sleep, Exercise, and Eating Habits on Track

Longer days and other seasonal changes can mess with your daily routine and even disrupt your internal clock (known as the circadian rhythm), leading to trouble sleeping. In turn, this may affect your mood and energy levels, eating habits, and level of activity.

Counteract this effect by keeping up with your  normal routine as much as possible. If you’re an early riser, try dark curtains in your room to mimic nighttime, so you can sleep even when daylight hours run long. 

Be sure to stay active, and keep yourself cool enough to eat well. On the flip side, don’t fall victim to cultural patterns of dieting and over-exercising in the summertime. Do what’s right for you to stay healthy and maintain your overall well-being.

3. Call on Your Therapy Techniques

If you’ve already been to substance abuse or mental health care, you may have experienced some form of psychotherapy, like cognitive behavioral therapy or dialectical behavior therapy.

These treatments help you identify your negative thought patterns and behaviors and find healthier ways to cope with them.

Symptoms of SAD can rob you of your desire to improve your mood. When this happens, look to your learned coping behaviors to help pull you out of your low mood.

4. Pay Attention to Your Medication

People who are actively taking antidepressants or anti-anxiety medications for major depressive disorder or another mental illness may need their meds adjusted if they have summer SAD.

This means your medication would likely be increased according to seasonal patterns. If you get winter blues, it would be increased in the fall and tapered in the spring. If you get summer depression, you’d increase your meds in early spring and likely taper in later summer.

5. Seek Mental Health Support

Ultimately, you may need to consult a healthcare provider about your summer SAD. Untreated depression can lead to a range of health issues, including increased alcohol or drug use and recovery relapse.

To avoid losing progress in your hard-fought recovery, reach out for help. Otter House Wellness can offer comprehensive mental health care if you’re near North Carolina.

Find Help for Summer Depression at Otter House Wellness

Summer seasonal affective disorder can affect you at a time of year when you least expect it, triggering relapse and disrupting your recovery.

Don’t let summer SAD stand in the way of your recovery progress. Reach out to Otter House Wellness today to learn about our intensive, highly effective outpatient rehab programs to improve your mental well-being.