SAD (Seasonal Affective Disorder)

? VOCABULARY PRACTICE

MOODS

Task 1. Here are some of the most common adjectives we use to describe the way we feel. Each one has a clue with it, to help you understand the mood,and to allow you to test yourself later. Study the adjectives carefully. Find their definitions in your dictionary.

Task 2.There are six people in the Bracewell family:

· grandfather, aged 86

· Mr and Mrs Bracewell

· Jenny, their 21-year-old daughter

· Tommy, their 19-year-old son

· Timmy, their 14-year-old son

Imagine how each member of the family felt on these six days of a week at the end of last year. Write one or two adjectives to describe each person’s mood per day.

On Monday, Grandfather felt sad but pleased for his grandson.

Mr Bracewell was depressed and easily annoyed.

Mon: Tommy announced he was going to Australia for a few years to find work.

Tues: It was the second anniversary of Grandmother’s death.

Wed: Mrs Bracewell came back from a shopping spree during which she had bought half the local fashion store stock.

Thur: Mr Bracewell admitted that he’d lost his job.

Fri: Timmy showed his (very bad) annual school report to the rest of the family.

Sat: Jenny announced she was getting married.

Task 3.Discuss or write the answer to this question: How do the items below affect your moods? For example: Sunny weather makes me merry or Watching political news nowadays makes me depressed.

1. the weather and temperature

2. your health

3. work

4. the world situation

5. the time of day or week or year

Task 4. Describe to a partner or in writing, in as much detail as you can, how you have been feeling over the past few days. Think in terms of hours and minutes, rather than 24-hour periods.

Task 5. Recall any three weather conditions from each month of the previous year. What did you feel like on each of these days?

SAD

& — READING&SPEAKING

Task 1.SAD is an acronym for Seasonal Affective Disorder. Can you explain what it is? Think of why this disorder is seasonal, in which season it occurs, whom it affects, etc. Use a dictionary if necessary.

Task 2.Read and translate the text:

WEATHER AND MOOD

Hippocrates, the father of medicine, observed in the 4th century BC that "whoever wishes to pursue the science of medicine must first investigate the seasons of the year and what occurs in them."

People who suffer from SAD (Seasonal Affective Disorder) are depressed, predisposed to over-eat and need a great deal of sleep. The disorder is linked directly to the amount of light travelling through the optic nerve. The acronym first hit the headlines in the early '80s. Many SAD sufferers have been successfully treated using light therapy.

Countries in the higher altitudes (including Sweden, Finland, Alaska, Iceland) often suffer psychological and sociological problems through lack of sunlight, with high rates of suicide, depression and alcoholism. The inhabitants of the world's most northerly city – Tromso, Norway – have to endure two months in darkness. The result is bio-rhythmic confusion, many people can't sleep, feel as if they have jet lag, put on weight.

Local winds such as le Mistral can have effect on mood. Le Mistral is a strong, dry, cold wind that blows through the Rhone Valley and the South of France to the Mediterranean. Symptoms include tiredness, headaches, insomnia, bad temper.

From "BBC English"

WHY DO I FEEL SO SAD?

Why is it that in dark, cloudy weather I take on a gloomy personality? Why do suicide rates drastically increase during the winter months? Why do I constantly find myself fatigued and lethargic when the weather outside is lousy?

For one reason or another, I allow the whims of Mother Nature to determine how I think and feel. If I wake up and the sun is brightly shining through my window creating a beautiful mixture of dark and light shadows, I suddenly feel happy and look forward to the day ahead. On the other hand, if I wake up and look out onto another cloudy and cold day in February, I have the aching desire to crawl back into bed and sleep the day away. I am not alone in that my mood and disposition are determined daily during those first few moments in which I am awake. In fact, this phenomenon is shared by many. The general feeling of winter depression coupled with normal mood in the summer has been around for centuries, but it was not until the 1980s that it was characterized as a type of clinical depression.

Psychologists have long been studying the effects of what they now refer to as Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD), the biological condition associated with changes in weather patterns. Can Seasonal Affective Disorder be considered a true medical condition? Everyone reacts to the changing seasons with corresponding changes in mood and behavior, but some experience more severe symptoms which alter their whole way of life. The symptoms of Seasonal Affective Disorder tend to first appear in late September when the days get shorter and the temperatures drop, and last until April or May. Seasonal Affective Disorder is characterized by recurring periods of depression lasting for at least two successive years of seasonal change. Other symptoms include a voracious appetite involving a high carbohydrate craving and accompanied by a 10-20 pound weight gain, sleep problems, memory loss, suicidal thoughts, problems concentrating, and an overall lack of interest in or enjoyment of activities. Unlike other forms of clinical depression, Seasonal Affective Disorder involves the cyclical pattern of depression that comes as the amount of daylight hours decrease and disappears as the days get longer.

Dr. Norman Rosenthal, the psychiatrist responsible for characterizing Seasonal Affective Disorder, also developed the field of light therapy. Light therapy regulates brain chemistry by controlling the levels of serotonin and melatonin in the body. Serotonin is a neurotransmitter believed to influence mood. Rosenthal believes that serotonin regulation is abnormal in people afflicted with SAD and that it can be corrected with more light. Additionally, serotonin levels can also be increased by a diet rich in carbohydrates, which explains the intense carbohydrate cravings of many SAD patients. On the other hand, melatonin is a hormone synthesized and released in response to the amount of light entering our eyes. During the night, the pineal gland produces melatonin which makes us drowsy. At daybreak, the bright light causes the gland to stop producing this melatonin. On dreary winter days, there is not sufficient light to trigger the inhibition of melatonin. This particular mechanism demonstrates how the brain regulates and controls behavior through inhibition rather than activation.

Task 3.Write down the list of SAD symptoms mentioned in the texts. How can one overcome those symptoms? Discuss it with your partner.

Task 4.Answer the following questions:

1. Have you ever heard of Seasonal Affective Disorder before? If yes, what did you know about it?

2. Have you ever suffered any of these symptoms? Which of them did you suffer? What did you do to feel better?

3. Do you think people in your country often face such problems? Why?

4. Do you agree that people started suffering SAD only in the recent years? Prove your point of view.

Task 5. Make up a composition “SAD” based on these two texts. Write about the disorder itself, its reasons and symptoms, possible treatments as well as whether you suffer from SAD or not. If yes, what symptoms do you experience?

Date: 2015-12-18; view: 1121