Mood In Winter Research Articles

Man of the House

Man of the House Kim Coleman Foote (bio) his muh was barely a week in the ground when his phone rang with Verna on the line. “Jebby, how soon can you come by the house?” she said in her sugary telephone voice. “I need you to remove your things from the yard.” A sick feeling came to Jeb’s stomach. For the first time since they had moved into their childhood house, it was inhabited by a single person and she thought she owned it. Verna had paid the property taxes, but Jeb had helped their mother with household expenses since he was a teenager. And the deed was technically still in their mother’s name. That meant Jeb [End Page 65] had a right to the place. He’d used the yard for storage for decades, so why should it bother Verna now? Not wanting to risk her winter mood, which could make her go off on you at the drop of a dime, he asked calmly if he could move some things to the basement. “It’s full already.” Lyin ass. “What about the bedrooms, then?” “I’m using them too.” “Come on, Verna. Ain’t you sleepin in the parlor like Muh was? What you doin with both those rooms upstairs?” “That’s my business.” Hands starting to sweat, he scrambled for an alternative. Maybe build a fence? But it would take too long to collect wood. The pieces would be mismatched. That wouldn’t suit her either. “When are you coming, Jeb?” Her words had taken on that ragged edge like their mother’s at her exploding point. “My girlfriends are joining me for tea next week and I don’t want them looking at all this junk.” Her friends had been by before and seen the yard, along with everybody else in Vauxhall. And their mother never called it junk. She didn’t exactly offer compliments, but she once compared it to artwork in a museum she visited over in New York with the family she kept house for. But the man who created the work in the museum was white, and an artist at that. Jeb didn’t consider his things art. They were simply what people no longer wanted— what they thought was worthless. When he started working as a trash man, he was shocked at what people threw away. The broken chairs and rusted doorknobs, patched tires and dented pots, scrap metal and auto parts, used cans and bottles. So much of it could be mended and resurrected, unlike people when they die. “Muh didn’t mind my stuff,” he muttered. “Mother didn’t mind nothin her baby Jebby did.” There it was: the real reason she wanted his things gone. Jeb could acknowledge that their mother did beat and yell at him less, but he figured it was because their daddy had given him more than his fair share. Jeb had practically been the old man’s whipping post. And it was natural for their mother to defer to Jeb about matters after their daddy died. After all, Jeb became the man of the house. He tried to get Verna off the subject by proposing the fence, but when she hissed the word “junk” again, and “eyesore,” their conversation dissolved into yelling and cussing, with Verna dropping more of her g’s. Before slamming the phone down, she said: “I’m gon get a dump truck over here tomorrow and I’m movin it all out, motherfucker.” [End Page 66] This coming from the queen of lies, Jeb didn’t believe it—who in God’s name did she know with a dump truck? But he never knew when to call her bluff. That afternoon, he rounded up his closest friend Booker, his hunting buddies, and a former coworker. As they congregated in the yard on Waldorf Place, surveying his life’s savings, Jeb noticed Verna peeking from the kitchen window at back. Glowering at her, he mumbled for the men to choose items as payment for helping him. They made their selections and Jeb cringed, especially when his coworker, who also had an eye for the salvageable, indicated the brass...

Seasonality and symptoms of depression: A systematic review of the literature.

Lay opinions and published papers alike suggest mood varies with the seasons, commonly framed as higher rates of depression mood in winter. Memory and confirmation bias may have influenced previous studies. We therefore systematically searched for and reviewed studies on the topic, but excluded study designs where explicit referrals to seasonality were included in questions, interviews or data collection. Systematic literature search in Cochrane database, DARE, Medline, Embase, PsychINFO and CINAHL, reporting according to the PRISMA framework, and study quality assessment using the Newcastle-Ottawa scale. Two authors independently assessed each study for inclusion and quality assessment. Due to large heterogeneity, we used a descriptive review of the studies. Among the 41 included studies, there was great heterogeneity in regards to included symptoms and disorder definitions, operationalisation and measurement. We also observed important heterogeneity in how definitions of 'seasons' as well as study design, reporting and quality. This heterogeneity precluded meta-analysis and publication bias analysis. Thirteen of the studies suggested more depression in winter. The remaining studies suggested no seasonal pattern, seasonality outside winter, or inconclusive results. The results of this review suggest that the research field of seasonal variations in mood disorders is fragmented, and important questions remain unanswered. There is some support for seasonal variation in clinical depression, but our results contest a general population shift towards lower mood and more sub-threshold symptoms at regular intervals throughout the year. We suggest future research on this issue should be aware of potential bias by design and take into account other biological and behavioural seasonal changes that may nullify or exacerbate any impact on mood.

Growing up during the Israeli-Palestinian conflict: The interplay of sense of coherence and the psychological and psychoendocrine consequences of traumatic stress

Pulsatile ultradian secretion of cortisol, rarely studied in salivary data, has functional importance in hypothalamic pituitary adrenal (HPA) axis regulation. The first daily ultradian episode, the cortisol awakening response (CAR), was examined in healthy adults, in 5-min secretion rates of salivary cortisol from electronically monitored awakening time to 1.25 h. Aggregated rates revealed a cubic trend, with wave-length of almost exactly 1 h, as predicted from known ultradian periodicity. Peak secretion rate occurred 20-min post-awakening. Peak (20-min) to trough (59-min) amplitude (PTA) expressed a salient signal shape. Rates rose steeply to and from peak, and major secretion was packaged into a few 5-min intervals, inconsistent with normal or uniform distribution of 5-min rates, but consistent with known pulsatile cortisol delivery. Null hypotheses asserting normal or uniform distributions were rejected. Maximal rates overwhelmingly occurred before and minimal rates after 30-mins, with degree of extremity at each polarity significantly positively correlated.To demonstrate utility and reliability of PTA estimation in a clinically relevant domain, re- analyses of a previously published study were conducted. Data from only three saliva samples were used, given importance of cost considerations for many CAR researchers. Difference between mean rates before and after 30-min yielded a simple salience index, highly correlated with PTA derived from full 5-min interval data. CAR salience performed significantly better than traditional AUCi magnitude in discriminating control cases (higher inferred amplitude) and cases with Seasonal Affective Disorder (lower inferred amplitude). Evidence suggested that low AUCi may be more sensitive in identifying within-subject changes (e.g. more depressed mood in winter among SAD cases) and low CAR salience better at revealing enduring between-subjects associations (e.g. underlying disorder vulnerability). Since both PTA salience and AUCi magnitude can be analysed and compared using exactly the same data from the same commonly used saliva sampling points, further research is warranted into the importance of individual differences in patterns of cortisol delivery, not just how much is delivered.

Feeling like a winner: Affective state, emotional state, and hormone monitoring in division I athletes

Pulsatile ultradian secretion of cortisol, rarely studied in salivary data, has functional importance in hypothalamic pituitary adrenal (HPA) axis regulation. The first daily ultradian episode, the cortisol awakening response (CAR), was examined in healthy adults, in 5-min secretion rates of salivary cortisol from electronically monitored awakening time to 1.25 h. Aggregated rates revealed a cubic trend, with wave-length of almost exactly 1 h, as predicted from known ultradian periodicity. Peak secretion rate occurred 20-min post-awakening. Peak (20-min) to trough (59-min) amplitude (PTA) expressed a salient signal shape. Rates rose steeply to and from peak, and major secretion was packaged into a few 5-min intervals, inconsistent with normal or uniform distribution of 5-min rates, but consistent with known pulsatile cortisol delivery. Null hypotheses asserting normal or uniform distributions were rejected. Maximal rates overwhelmingly occurred before and minimal rates after 30-mins, with degree of extremity at each polarity significantly positively correlated.To demonstrate utility and reliability of PTA estimation in a clinically relevant domain, re- analyses of a previously published study were conducted. Data from only three saliva samples were used, given importance of cost considerations for many CAR researchers. Difference between mean rates before and after 30-min yielded a simple salience index, highly correlated with PTA derived from full 5-min interval data. CAR salience performed significantly better than traditional AUCi magnitude in discriminating control cases (higher inferred amplitude) and cases with Seasonal Affective Disorder (lower inferred amplitude). Evidence suggested that low AUCi may be more sensitive in identifying within-subject changes (e.g. more depressed mood in winter among SAD cases) and low CAR salience better at revealing enduring between-subjects associations (e.g. underlying disorder vulnerability). Since both PTA salience and AUCi magnitude can be analysed and compared using exactly the same data from the same commonly used saliva sampling points, further research is warranted into the importance of individual differences in patterns of cortisol delivery, not just how much is delivered.

Developmental origins of the human hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis

Pulsatile ultradian secretion of cortisol, rarely studied in salivary data, has functional importance in hypothalamic pituitary adrenal (HPA) axis regulation. The first daily ultradian episode, the cortisol awakening response (CAR), was examined in healthy adults, in 5-min secretion rates of salivary cortisol from electronically monitored awakening time to 1.25 h. Aggregated rates revealed a cubic trend, with wave-length of almost exactly 1 h, as predicted from known ultradian periodicity. Peak secretion rate occurred 20-min post-awakening. Peak (20-min) to trough (59-min) amplitude (PTA) expressed a salient signal shape. Rates rose steeply to and from peak, and major secretion was packaged into a few 5-min intervals, inconsistent with normal or uniform distribution of 5-min rates, but consistent with known pulsatile cortisol delivery. Null hypotheses asserting normal or uniform distributions were rejected. Maximal rates overwhelmingly occurred before and minimal rates after 30-mins, with degree of extremity at each polarity significantly positively correlated.To demonstrate utility and reliability of PTA estimation in a clinically relevant domain, re- analyses of a previously published study were conducted. Data from only three saliva samples were used, given importance of cost considerations for many CAR researchers. Difference between mean rates before and after 30-min yielded a simple salience index, highly correlated with PTA derived from full 5-min interval data. CAR salience performed significantly better than traditional AUCi magnitude in discriminating control cases (higher inferred amplitude) and cases with Seasonal Affective Disorder (lower inferred amplitude). Evidence suggested that low AUCi may be more sensitive in identifying within-subject changes (e.g. more depressed mood in winter among SAD cases) and low CAR salience better at revealing enduring between-subjects associations (e.g. underlying disorder vulnerability). Since both PTA salience and AUCi magnitude can be analysed and compared using exactly the same data from the same commonly used saliva sampling points, further research is warranted into the importance of individual differences in patterns of cortisol delivery, not just how much is delivered.

Salience versus magnitude in the measurement of the cortisol awakening response

Pulsatile ultradian secretion of cortisol, rarely studied in salivary data, has functional importance in hypothalamic pituitary adrenal (HPA) axis regulation. The first daily ultradian episode, the cortisol awakening response (CAR), was examined in healthy adults, in 5-min secretion rates of salivary cortisol from electronically monitored awakening time to 1.25 h. Aggregated rates revealed a cubic trend, with wave-length of almost exactly 1 h, as predicted from known ultradian periodicity. Peak secretion rate occurred 20-min post-awakening. Peak (20-min) to trough (59-min) amplitude (PTA) expressed a salient signal shape. Rates rose steeply to and from peak, and major secretion was packaged into a few 5-min intervals, inconsistent with normal or uniform distribution of 5-min rates, but consistent with known pulsatile cortisol delivery. Null hypotheses asserting normal or uniform distributions were rejected. Maximal rates overwhelmingly occurred before and minimal rates after 30-mins, with degree of extremity at each polarity significantly positively correlated.To demonstrate utility and reliability of PTA estimation in a clinically relevant domain, re- analyses of a previously published study were conducted. Data from only three saliva samples were used, given importance of cost considerations for many CAR researchers. Difference between mean rates before and after 30-min yielded a simple salience index, highly correlated with PTA derived from full 5-min interval data. CAR salience performed significantly better than traditional AUCi magnitude in discriminating control cases (higher inferred amplitude) and cases with Seasonal Affective Disorder (lower inferred amplitude). Evidence suggested that low AUCi may be more sensitive in identifying within-subject changes (e.g. more depressed mood in winter among SAD cases) and low CAR salience better at revealing enduring between-subjects associations (e.g. underlying disorder vulnerability). Since both PTA salience and AUCi magnitude can be analysed and compared using exactly the same data from the same commonly used saliva sampling points, further research is warranted into the importance of individual differences in patterns of cortisol delivery, not just how much is delivered.

Psychoneuroendocrine effects of combined thyroxine and triiodothyronine versus tyrosine during prolonged Antarctic residence

Objectives. We previously reported that cognitive function improves with thyroxine and that there is a circannual pattern to mood and human TSH during Antarctic residence. To extend these findings, we examined the effects of tyrosine and a combined levothyroxine/liothyronine supplement in euthyroid men and women who spent the austral summer (n = 43) and/or winter (n = 42) in Antarctica.Study Design. Randomized, placebo-controlled, clinical trial.Methods. Subjects were randomized to receive the following each day for 91.6 +/- 3.2 days in summer and/or 138.0 +/- 3.2 days in winter: (1) 12g tyrosine mixed in 113g applesauce; (2) 50 microg of levothyroxine and 12.5 microg of liothyronine (T4-T3 Supplement); or (3) placebo. Cognitive performance and mood were assessed using the Automatic Neuropsychological Assessment Metric - Isolated and Confined Environments.Results. With placebo in summer, mood did not change while TSH decreased by 28%; in winter, there was a 136% degradation in mood (p & 0.01) and TSH increased by 18%. With combined T4-T3 supplement, there was a 51% degradation in mood in summer compared with placebo (p & 0.05) and TSH decreased by 57%; in winter there was a 135% degradation in mood while TSH was reduced by 26% (p & 0.05). Tyrosine use in summer was associated with no change in mood and a 30% decline in TSH, while in winter there was a 47% improvement in mood and TSH decreased by 28% along with a 6% increase in fT3 (p & 0.05).Conclusions. Administration of tyrosine leads to a significant reduction in serum TSH and improvement in mood in winter compared with placebo, while the combined T4-T3 supplement leads to a worsening of mood in summer and no improvement in winter. There appears to be a seasonal influence on the psychological response to interventions and the relationship to changes in TSH reductions.

Perceptual Asymmetry for Chimeric Faces and Winter Disturbances in Mood and Behavior

Abstract. Different affective disturbances are related to brain activity, and, thus, to perceptual bias in very specific ways ( Keller et al., 2000 ). During the winter months, approximately 90% of people report lowered levels of mood and increased levels of anxiety to varying degrees (e.g., Magnusson, 2000 ). The current study examines the relationship between such winter mood disturbances and perceptual asymmetry on the chimeric-face task using a nonclinical sample (38 males and 92 females). Because of the suggested influence of symbolic light on cognitive processing of seasonal depressives ( Bouhuys, Meesters, Jansen, & Bloem, 1994 ), chimeric faces were presented on both symbolic bright and dark backgrounds. Face processing demonstrated the expected left hemifacial perceptual bias. However, the magnitude of individuals' perceptual bias bore no relation to subjectively reported seasonality, depressed mood, or anxiety. This was regardless of whether the faces were displayed on symbolic bright or dark backgrounds. Methodological factors must be considered. However, results are discussed in terms of the importance of clarifying the distinct nature of the psychological and neurobiological profile associated with winter disturbances in mood, and the possible influences of symbolic light on cognitive processing.

The Seasonal Pattern Assessment Questionnaire as a measure of mood seasonality: a prospective validation study

The aim of this study was to test the validity of the Seasonal Pattern Assessment Questionnaire (SPAQ) as a measure of winter pattern seasonality of mood in the general population. The criterion was four repeated measurements of mood, collected in summer and winter each year for 2 years in a longitudinal questionnaire study. To account for the imperfect reliability of SPAQ reports, the SPAQ was completed on two occasions, and aggregate SPAQ variables created. Three variables from the SPAQ were tested for their correlation with prospectively measured lowering of mood in winter: seasonal pattern type, Global Seasonality Score (GSS) and self-reported problems with seasonal variation. The sampling frame was the electoral roll in a suburban region of Melbourne, Australia. Complete four-wave data were obtained from 304 respondents (53.9% female). Seasonal pattern type (self-report as feeling worst in winter months) was the only SPAQ variable to show a significant association with prospectively measured winter pattern seasonality of mood. It is provisionally concluded that the SPAQ can function as a measure of seasonality of mood in the normal population, but that validity has only been confirmed for the relatively gross variable of seasonal pattern type.

Seasonality and circadian phase delay: prospective evidence that winter lowering of mood is associated with a shift towards Eveningness

Background: Lewy’s phase shift hypothesis (PSH) of seasonal affective disorder (SAD) asserts that winter depression is caused by an abnormal delay of circadian phase in winter. The aim of this study was to further investigate the PSH by testing the novel hypothesis that winter pattern seasonality of mood in the general population is associated with a phase delay of circadian rhythms in winter. Methods: Using a random community sample of 244 adults in Melbourne, seasonality of mood was measured prospectively as the within-subject difference between self-reports of behavioural engagement in summer and winter across 3 years. The Horne–Ostberg Morningness–Eveningness questionnaire (MEQ) was used as a self-report estimate of circadian phase. Phase delay in winter was measured as the within-subject difference between summer and winter estimates of circadian phase, with relative shifts towards Eveningness being interpreted as phase delay. Results: As expected, a significant association was found between winter pattern seasonality of mood and within-subject phase delay in winter ( r=0.17, P<0.01). Limitations: Circadian phase was operationalised on the MEQ. While a number of studies have shown the MEQ to correlate with physiological measures of circadian phase, the findings await replication using a more direct measure of the circadian system. Conclusions: A positive association was found between lowered mood in winter and winter phase delay amongst a random community sample. This provisional finding adds support to Lewy’s PSH by demonstrating that phase delay may be causally important not just in clinical cases of SAD, but across the continuum of mood seasonality.

Summer mood in winter depressives: validation of a structured interview.

Two structured interviews, the Hypomania Interview Guide (Including Hyperthymia), for Seasonal Affective Disorder (HIGH-SAD) and its successor, the Hypomania Interview Guide (Including Hyperthymia), Retrospective Assessment Version (HIGH-R), were validated for the assessment of nondepressed spring/summer mood states in patients with DSM-III-R or DSM-IV diagnoses of Recurrent Bipolar disorder (I, II or NOS) or Recurrent Major Depressive Disorder (MDD; unipolar), both with Seasonal Pattern, and in normal control subjects (HIGH-SAD only). The instruments retrospectively rate the frequency and severity of DSM diagnostic criterion features as well as several non-DSM features. Both instruments had high internal consistency. Normal controls had lower total scores than unipolar patients, who had lower scores than bipolar patients. Total score classified 85-91% of patients with seasonal affective disorder (SAD) into the correct unipolar or bipolar group. For boundary mood cases, small subsets of features provided better classification accuracy. Based on total score, MDD patients were divided into three subgroups: euthymes (normal mood), hyperthymes (slightly elevated mood), and high-hyperthymes (scores overlapping with hypomania). With the exception of sharpened thinking, DSM items dominated patient classifications. Distinct clusters of "positive" (pleasant, agreeable) or "negative" (impairing) features described the mood states. The HIGH-R and HIGH-SAD are useful for discriminating and classifying hypomania and mania in bipolar patients, and euthymia and hyperthymia in unipolar patients.

PARENTAL REPORTS OF SEASONAL MOOD AND BEHAVIOR CHANGES IN CHILDREN

Objective: The chief purpose of this study was to investigate the nature and prevalence of children's seasonal symptoms. Method: Parental reports of seasonal changes in six mood or behavioral symptoms (sleeping, eating, irritability, energy, withdrawal, and sadness) were surveyed for children living across the United States. The sample included 892 girls (mean age = 10.5 ± 1.0 years) and 788 boys (mean age = 10.6 ± 0.9 years), with a response rate of 46% for girls' parents and 39% for boys' parents. Results: At least one winter recurring symptom was reported in 48.5% of children, as compared with 91% in fall and 10.8% in spring. Winter symptoms were reported equally in girls and boys with one exception ("is tired"); age effects were found for three symptoms only in girls ("sleeps more," "is tired," and "withdraws"). Regional effects showed more winter symptoms reports in northern zones than in southern zones. Conclusions: Given the potential therapeutic benefit of light therapy in children with seasonal patterns, careful assessment of seasonality is merited for children with winter mood and behavior problems.

Parental Reports of Seasonal Mood and Behavior Changes in Children

Objective The chief purpose of this study was to investigate the nature and prevalence of children's seasonal symptoms. Method Parental reports of seasonal changes in six mood or behavioral symptoms (sleeping, eating, irritability, energy, withdrawal, and sadness) were surveyed for children living across the United States. The sample included 892 girls (mean age = 10.5 ± 1.0 years) and 788 boys (mean age = 10.6 ± 0.9 years), with a response rate of 46% for girls' parents and 39% for boys' parents. Results At least one winter recurring symptom was reported in 48.5% of children, as compared with 9.1% in fall and 10.8% in spring. Winter symptoms were reported equally in girls and boys with one exception (“is tired”); age effects were found for three symptoms only in girls (“sleeps more,” “is tired,” and “withdraws”). Regional effects showed more winter symptoms reports in northern zones than in southern zones. Conclusions Given the potential therapeutic benefit of light therapy in children with such seasonal patterns, careful assessment of seasonality is merited for children with winter mood and behavior problems.