h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

I would like to propose another treatment for S.A.D., one which I hope to convert great numbers of people to.

Hibernation - you know it makes sense!
Sleep through the dark and grim days of winter, and emerge refreshed and joyful into the spring sunshine.

I could actually really go for that

I can imagine trying to convince upper management at work to go for it... "Hey, you know, I need the months of December, January, and February off. I'm going to stuff myself with fats and oils all through November and sleep it all off. I'll be back at work by the beginning of March, eh? Eh? Why are you looking at me like that?"

Oscar - Fantastic! a convert, you're welcome to join me if you bring your record collection.

Mr Tuvai - Oils and fats be damned , the plan goes like this:
Winter is ok up til Christmas right? (My birthday, then Halloween / Samhain, then Bonfirenight, then Christmas Party season) So, the pre-hybernation routine is ;
1) to go to as many Xmas parties as possible, thus having the chance to load up on festive fayre and build up a huge need for sleep.
2) Behave quite outragiously at several New Years parties
3) On Jan 1st, retire to a cosy cave-like environment (or an actual cave)
4) Set alarm clock for Valentines / St Patricks day (according to personal taste)
5) Emerge, having missed the worst part of winter (and the New Year hangover)

Workwise - sell it as a sabatical that will make you a much more productive individual in the end.

Cherio - Pinks

True... and in America, after Thanksgiving and Christmas, we've got enough fats and such from our feasting that we wouldn't need to gorge ourselves much to hibernate... I'll have to run this across my HR manager's desk come December...

The true solution, of course, is to get yourself employed at h2g2 and tout your annual absence as one of those *very long* lunches.

I actualy tried hibernating once when I was a child. I built myself a den inside my wardrobe and attempted to sleep for a week. My mother was none to impressed with the whole thing. I watched WAY to many wildlife documentries when I was that age.

Living north of Aberdeen makes SAD kind of inevitable. Having said that, being awake for 24 hours during the long summer days does give you a bit of a buzz:
Woohoo weeeee woop woop!

I live in Canada. Winter unofficially starts any day now. It is bright, warm and sunny today, but in one month it could be freezing and covered in snow with not a ray of sun in sight. Normally from December to May it is far below 0oC most of the time, covered in ssnow and dark- You get up leave for work in the dark, don your padded boots and artic jacket to survive exposure to gale force winds at -20-40oC - get into your car, turn up the heating; Drive to work; arrive just as the car warms up above freezing point; Enter office and take off layers of insulation; work; leave office in darkness and go home.

Here we call SAD "cabin fever". I am sure I suffer from it a bit - probably because I love warm sunny weather so much and being outdoors (strangely). The best cure is to find things to do like ski, play with the snow or hike/walk outside as often as possible during the day - Even though days are short - the middle of the day is often bright. And if the air is about -35oC, it is rather crisp and refreshing - It is fun to see how long you can grow the icicles in your nose.

The worst thing is to sit inside all night drinking beer and watching hockey on TV. Although this is a common enogh pastime it will aggravate an onset of SAD by February/March or failing that by April before the snow melts.

In Britian it's the complete opposite - we don't have any deliniation between the seasons at all. My friend from Ontario was distressed to dicover when she arrived here, that autumn in Scotland usually starts around the end of August and lasts right through to December, with the leaves remaining on the trees the whole time in various states of soggy decay. I'd give anything for just one year where Autumn happened over a couple of days and the trees all changed colour at once. Winter is gebnerally wet and lasts right through to April, sometimes May with Spring only happening in a few sheltered pockets and not across the country as a whole. If we're lucky, we get a few week-long spells of hot weather in June and July, then it's straight back into the whole autumn thing again.

I have to say though, I would miss having 20 hours of daylight at the hieght of summer if I moved somewhere more meteorologically predictable.

I grew up in the North of England and Scotland. I remember the Winter was when it rained nearly every day, and Summer was when it rained every other day. We usually got a foot of snow once a year so the junior school and secondary school could have massive snow ball battles.

Certainly in Ontario it is definitely always winter end of Jan, beginning Feb. as it will likely be below -20o and windy. And dark. You do not get used to it.