Originally published November 3 2005
Seasonal affective disorder could soon be treated with talk therapy
by Mike Adams, the Health Ranger, NaturalNews Editor
Kelly Rohan, an assistant professor of pyschology at the University of Vermont, is developing a technique for treating seasonal affective disorder, which involves periods of depression that set in during winter and fall, with talk therapy.
For most, the clock shift just adds an hour to the weekend -- but for sufferers of seasonal affective disorder, a syndrome involving recurring bouts of depression during fall and winter months, it marks the beginning of a difficult time of year when many forgo an after-work run for a nap, watch television instead of walk the dog, or sleep later in the morning.
With this year's turning back of the clock, the 14.5 million Americans susceptible to SAD may begin feeling fatigued, worthless, disinterested, even suicidal.
Many will receive treatment involving sitting in front of a light box for an hour or two a day in hopes that the white fluorescent or full-spectrum light will simulate sunlight and make them feel better.
The treatment works reasonably well but is hard to stick with, so Kelly Rohan, a SAD expert and assistant professor of psychology at the University of Vermont, views it as more a quick fix than long-term solution.
She is currently exploring treatment through cognitive-behavioral therapy, a commonly used form of "talk therapy" that has been used for non-seasonal depression since the 1960s, with SAD patients.
In a 2005 study involving 61 patients, Rohan treated one group with daily light therapy, another with 12 sessions of CBT and a third group with a combination of both treatments.
Rohan's findings, which will be published later this year as a follow-up to a 2004 study that appeared in the June issue of Journal of Affective Disorders, show that all three groups showed comparable improvement across the six weeks of study treatment compared to a wait-list control group.
During the therapy, which occurs twice a week for six weeks, Rohan teaches patients about the origins of SAD and how learned behaviors and ingrained negative thought patterns contribute to their symptoms.
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