Judy Woodruff:
The holiday season is considered one of the most difficult times of the year for anyone with mental health issues. In fact, the National Alliance on Mental Illness found that 64 percent of people living with a mental illness report that their condition worsens during the holidays.
And now the recent suicide death of famed dancer, producer and deejay tWitch has sparked another national conversation about the struggles many people face during the holiday season.
We will explore some of these concerns with Dr. Gregory Scott Brown. He is a psychiatrist and author of The Self-Healing Mind: An Essential Five-Step Practice for Overcoming Anxiety and Depression and Revitalizing Your Life.
Dr. Brown, thank you so much for joining us.
I think we’ve known for a long time that the holidays can be stressful for many, if not all of us, but especially for people with mental illness. Why is she?
Dr. Gregory Scott Brown, Author, The Self-Healing Mind: There are many different factors at play.
We all know how challenging and stressful gift giving and even the gift receiving process can be. Unfortunately, some people are facing financial challenges during the holidays. And as much as we love spending time with family and friends, keeping them can lead to increased anxiety levels for some of us.
But another idea that is backed by good science is the fact that, during the winter months, we are simply exposed to less sunlight. This means that melatonin, the hormone released in the brain that tells us it’s time to sleep, is produced earlier in the day. And that can make some of us feel sluggish, tired, and even depressed.
