This message is from: Doug Knutsen <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
Hi to Jean Gayle -
Thanks again for your book, I'm saving it for after-Christmas reading! I'm
glad you enjoyed mine [Things They Never Told Me in Therapy School]. I'm not
sure whether folks on the Digest know that I'm also a psychotherapist, but in
response to your question to Jean Ernest about darkness and depression, I'm
stepping "out of the closet'" and revealing my profession in front of God and
everybody. [Sorry, sometimes I get a little dramatic...]
Anyhow, our friends in Anchorage, who are health professionals also, tell us
that depression, especially Seasonal Affective Disorder, is a widespread
problem. I know that one of the ways they deal with it is to have the largest
video stores I've ever seen! They also use the high-intensity "SAD" light
therapy. I'm convinced that a number of my clients here in the Seattle area
suffer from it, and my hunch is that it's worse for folks of Scandinavian and
other northern European descent. [Aha! Now I may be able to understand Ingmar
Bergman's films...]
For those who aren't familiar with SAD, the individual experiencing it shows
many of the usual clinical signs of depression [fatigue, crabbiness, tension,
loss of libido, anxiety, appetite changes, anhedonia {loss of ability to enjoy
life}, pessimism, etc]. In addition he or she has "hybernation" type symptoms
such as weight gain, need for more sleep, loss of interest in life, and general
trouble getting things done.
So, noticing these characteristics [usually in one's spouse], may not indicate
laziness, feeling sorry for one's self, or general lack of character. They
could be signs of depression. Depression is a real, biological condition, and
is highly treatable by a number of methods. If concerned, consult your Doc.
One treatment is to move to a sunnier climate at a lower latitude....
Well Jean, I seem to have gone on and on, but this is not unusual for me. I'll
be interested in Jean Ernest's response. Cheers, Peg [Blackstone] Knutsen
