Diagnosis and Treatment of Seasonal Affective Disorder

Abstract

SELECTED CASE A 39-year-old novelist presented in October complaining of increasing fatigue and severe writer's block. For a month she had found it increasingly hard to wake up and get going in the morning. Her energy level was low; she was unable to concentrate on her writing and had trouble meeting deadlines. She had gained 2.25 kg and had difficulty avoiding desserts and high-calorie snacks. Whenever possible, she would nap at her desk or vegetate in front of the television. Bills went unpaid, and laundry piled up. She felt disgusted at her incompetence and pessimistic about the future. A review of her history revealed that from her college years she had had similar difficulties, beginning in fall and winter and lasting until spring. For the last few winters, these episodes had been getting worse. During the spring, she would feel alive again—unusually energetic and euphoric, highly productive, and needed little