I live and so cal and still get depressed in winter.

Have you tried Nature Made: Super B Complex & D3 5,000 I.U. gel caps? Also maybe add a 500mg Magnesium supplement & a Multi-Vitamin. You should consider getting your vitamin levels checked. . .that may be your issue if this is an annual cycle of seasonal affect disorder? You should talk to your physician about having a few levels checked. Also, there are special lights for this as well. My best friend picked one up at her local drug store. Hope that helps Best of luck!

There is no need for drugs, if you're needing more sunlight, get out of bed earlier. It will improve your mood. Depression wants to hide in bed, but it's hugely beneficial to get up, get outside, get moving.

I've lived where it is actually cold (Lake Tahoe). This (So Cal) isn't cold. Even with the crazy wind, this is not a cold place. That is an excuse.

I'm trying to be firm with you because I have sufferend from depression and I know how hard it can be, but getting up and out of bed is massively important and can change a lot. Try that first.

It sounds like getting up earlier might not be an option due to work schedule.

Have you tried taking melatonin? I live in NorCal & we have tons of fog, all day from like late oct to early may & found it really helpful.

Try living in Seattle. :laugh:

It sounds like getting up earlier might not be an option due to work schedule.

this is what I saw,and was responding to.

I am not a morning person so by the time I get up and out it seems I have only 6 hrs and the day is gone.

OP also said they work 3 12hr days a week, I know that would f--- up my sleep schedule something fierce, lol.

Exercise definitely can help. That's the #1 way I fight against depression, myself. Setting small, manageable goals is the key to success when motivation is affected by depression.

I find that having bright lights around during the winter months helps me psychologically. I used to have a lava lamp by my desk at work, and would stare into it and relax if I felt a wave of sadness coming on. Now I have a lamp that my boss bought me for $20, and it is supposed to mimic natural light. It makes me feel a bit better.

I've also tried to associate darkness and cold with fun things: different flavourful teas, candles, etc. Basically, anything I can do to celebrate the darkness instead of letting it get me down.

Good luck -- I hope you feel better soon! The days are getting longer now!

Go tanning. . I normally HATE the idea of cancer in a box, but it helps seasonal acquired depression . . For some. Good luck!

If you work 12 hours they have to give you your hour lunch and breaks. Why not take your lunch to take a walk and then eat during your breaks. I have to do that many times more because I know if I actually clock out for lunch I will end up being called back in. In order to be able to take a lunch at all, I eat slightly earlier during my break. I don't need a whole hour anyway. Fifteen minutes is plenty.

I understand the winter depression, I know plenty of people with it but I think you just have to try to make your world work for you. I ialso hate leaving from work and it's already pitch dark. I feel like I can't get my grocery shopping done except on the weekend.

Hope this helps in some way.

You may want to try a light box -- one that is made specifically for SAD, and not one that is made for "waking up" or one that is less than 10,000 LUX. And/Or try some Vitamin D pills and/or Vitamin B complex and/or fish oil. All of these things are known to help some people with SAD and SAD symptoms. And, if it can help get you just a little more energy and a little less depressed, you may be able to use that to get more exercise in, which in turn can also help significantly with SAD. (Personally, I was the person who hated people who would tell me to "just exercise" to get more energy and lessen my depression. If I had the energy and lack of depression to exercise, I wouldn't need the exercise to get more energy and lessen my depression. But, after finally getting treatment for a very real problem -- sleep apnea in my case -- and getting enough energy to actually exercise, I could see the benefits of exercise. But the reality was, until I treated the original problem, no amount of attempting to exercise was going to do **** other than make me feel like even more crap because I didn't have enough energy to "take care of myself." So, if you have the energy to get in even 10 or 20 minutes of exercise, do it. If there's something that's preventing even that (or, if your getting that but still feeling a lack of energy and/or depression), find OTHER things that can help. Be it vitamins, light therapy, medications, whatever. Exercise is wonderful and miraculous. But sometimes it really isn't the only (or even best) solution.

I don't recommend tanning -- the specific UV rays that you need to help combat SAD are the UV rays that the tanning beds block out (because they are more likely to cause sun burn). So, you are still risking skin cancer and ugly skin, without much help for SAD. (I know there are people who swear by this technique -- but, I'd guess it's a placebo effect; or possibly someone who wants it to work to justify using a tanning bed -- there is absolutely NO scientific basis for it to help with SAD (and a lot against it), and the dangers and risks are well known. And, if, for whatever reason, this really is the only thing that will work, it's probably best to try the other options first, given the significantly lower risks they carry.)