Shedding Light on Winter Depression and ADHD

Q: Do people with ADHD experience winter depression more often and more severely than do neurotypical individuals? Also, why is my quality of sleep affected in winter?Winter depression is marked by two or more weeks of low mood, usually starting in the Northern Hemisphere’s fall or winter when there is less daylight, that resolves in the spring or summer when there is more light.

There is an association between winter depression, also known as seasonal affective disorder, or SAD, and ADHD.In the Netherlands, where I live, researchers asked 259 patients with ADHD about seasonal mood swings; 27% reported winter depression compared with 3% in neurotypical people.1 Other researchers have confirmed this increased rate among people with ADHD.2 What’s more, females are four times more likely than males to have winter depression.1Sleep problems are also common among people with ADHD: About 80% are late sleepers3 , which means they have a short sleep duration — they fall asleep at a later time and sleep less because they must wake up for work or school.Q : How does winter depression relate to screen addiction in children with ADHD?Children with ADHD who are late sleepers and who experience winter depression may turn to video games and the Internet.

Screens emit blue light, and they’re often held close to the eye, so the effects are similar to light therapy if you’re staring at them for a while.[Get This Free Download: How to Sleep Better with ADHD]Screen use at night can induce delayed circadian rhythms, disrupting your sleep-wake cycle.4 Many children with ADHD are already late sleepers, so using screens after 9:30 pm will delay their rhythm even more; this is not recommended.