When the Light Drops: Seasonal Affective Disorder and Depression

Written By Joey Banks, MD

Every year around this time, the clinic shifts before I do.  People start coming in with the same quiet list:

“I’m dragging.”   “I can’t concentrate.”   “I just feel… gray.”

While I’m reassuring them, I’m also noticing my own slide. Seasonal Affective Disorder isn’t dramatic. It’s steady and real. I lived in Alaska for 11 years: loved the moose, the wild frontier, the Family you build when you’re far from home, but I never loved the dark.

The advice that snapped me awake

One winter, after listening to me complain about feeling drained and slipping around on icy sidewalks, my friend Kristen (grateful today for her) looked at me and said, “Why don’t you just go get Yak-trax for your shoes, you silly goose?”

Translation: stop making winter harder than it has to be.


And she wasn’t wrong. Yes, they cost a bit, but decent ones last forever. And thrift stores, swaps, and gear exchanges often have them.  During residency in Alaska, it was completely possible to spend 12 hours inside and go a week without seeing actual sunlight. Another nudge from lots of people in AK: 

“Touch the sun at noon, even for a second.”

What helps (and why I recommend these)

And in classic timing, just as I was thinking “I should finally write something about SAD,” the New York Times ran a piece on it too. Apparently, it’s that season.

1. Get a real SAD light

People buy the tiny, cheap ones online because they look convenient.
But here’s the issue: the smaller the light, the closer you have to sit, sometimes 6 inches away. No one sits 6 inches from anything first thing in the morning.

A larger 10,000-lux light lets you sit comfortably, drink your coffee, read your notes, and not feel like you’re interrogating yourself.   Use it for 20–30 minutes in the morning, ideally before noon.  Using it late in the day can throw off your sleep.   (In many plans these can count as HSA or FSA.)

2. Restarting or adjusting an SSRI is normal

A lot of people do a seasonal restart. Others bump up their dose just for the winter months. There’s nothing dramatic about it, it’s simply matching treatment to predictable symptoms. If you’re considering a change, reach out to your medical team. You shouldn’t be guessing your way through medication decisions.

3. Nature-bathing, in tiny, realistic doses

This doesn’t need to be a hike.   It can be standing by a tree for five minutes on your lunch break.
Walking between buildings instead of taking the indoor hallway.  Real air instead of HVAC air.  There’s good evidence that even small amounts of time in nature shift the stress system. You feel it more than you think.

4. Vitamin D: not magic, but reasonable

It’s not a cure for SAD.  But for many people who feel the winter slump, 1,000–2,000 IU daily is a simple support. You don’t need to check levels unless there’s another medical reason to.

5. Seek new forms of care when the old ones feel tired

Every year someone tells me, “I thought I could muscle through.” And every year I remind them: winter asks for more support, not less.

That support can look like ketamine-assisted therapy, a medication tune-up, a new class, a gym you’ve never tried, or a small ritual that reminds your system it’s still alive in there. For some people, the shift is something as simple as meeting a friend for an evening walk instead of a drink.   And yes — if you live in Missoula, get your headlamp ready and keep an eye out for those unexpected northern lights we’re lucky to see.

And the deeper truth

Winter asks us to slow down. SAD is something different — a chemical slide, not a seasonal rhythm.  

Peace,      Dr. Joey

References & Resources

Joey Banks, MD

Dr. Joey Banks, MD, is a board-certified family physician and co-founder of Inner Journey Healthcare. With over two decades of experience in medicine and a deep commitment to integrative care, Dr. Banks blends clinical expertise with a holistic, patient-centered approach. Her work bridges the gap between mental and physical health, offering thoughtful medical guidance and supporting innovative treatments like ketamine-assisted psychotherapy. At the heart of her practice is a belief in compassionate, collaborative healing.

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