The student news site of Westford Academy

WA Ghostwriter

The student news site of Westford Academy

WA Ghostwriter

The student news site of Westford Academy

WA Ghostwriter

Rain, rain, here to stay, when will there be another sunny day?

By Lauren Hartnett
Staff Writer

The past few weeks have seen little sun here in Westford, with rainstorms almost every day. And the weather isn’t lightening up yet- there is supposed to be even more rain tomorrow and over the weekend. Upset? You’re not alone, most people groan at the thought of rain and another dark and gloomy day.

Some people actually get depressed when the weather is dark, like when it rains or in the winter when there isn’t a lot of sunlight. These people could have Seasonal Affective Disorder. Seasonal Affective Disorder [S.A.D.] is a disease that causes people to become depressed and moody during certain parts of the year, usually in winter. So, you would think since it’s spring and everyone’s more active now that this wouldn’t be a problem.

Wrong. All these days of rain are having the same affect on people as the winter does on people with S.A.D.. Years of research and testing have confirmed that weather really does have an affect on people’s moods. One of the reasons why the rain may be making everyone feel more down and moody, or feeling less active and not being able to concentrate, is the lack of vitamin D. People usually get vitamin D from the being outside and soaking in the sun. But currently, the only thing to soak in outside is the rain.

Another way weather can affect you now is not only making you feel sad and irritable, but also causing disturbances of sleep. Several people last week woke up during thunderstorms in the middle of the night. Something about the humidity and the lack of light makes people feel uncomfortable and disturb their sleep cycle. Not only that, but when it’s raining the whole outside is dark. When people’s eyes detect darkness, their brain releases melatonin, which establishes the sleep cycle. That release of melatonin is one of the main reasons why people always feel tired when it rains. Even though you may feel more tired than usual, most are unable to fall asleep easily during dark and gloomy weather.

However, this is not always the case. For some people, they sleep more than usual but still are sulking and drowsy during the day. A lot of time people with S.A.D. can lose interest in usual activities, or feel antisocial. Sometimes people crave carbohydrates and eat a lot of pasta and bread, which in turn makes them gain weight.

S.A.D. is most common during the winter. Also, the disease is usually found in woman. Most of the time, people with S.A.D. get the disease symptoms when they’re between 15-58, so if you’ve been feeling down with the weather lately it may be because you have S.A.D. But this condition is treatable; you can get light therapy or antidepressants to help you. Or, you can just hope for the rain to lighten up and the sun to come out tomorrow.

All in all, rain does not have a positive affect on people. It doesn’t feel “normal” to us, like a sunny day. Even if you don’t have S.A.D., most people can agree on the fact that they enjoy the sunlight more than the rain. The fact that you can be active outside in the light is one of the main reasons for this. So, how are we supposed to cope during this next week of rain? Well, you can try listening to upbeat music to give your body more energy. Also, if you read you’re brain is being active, which may start to wake you up. So don’t give up! This rain depression will soon be over once the summer comes, but for now we just have to seize every chance we get to be in the sunlight and hang in there.

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    DaveJun 6, 2011 at 2:59 pm

    That’s interesting. I can see how that would work. It sounds a bit like Cabin Fever

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