TeenHelp - Permanent daylight savings and winter blues/Seasonal depression

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Permanent daylight savings and winter blues/Seasonal depression

Many people have an increase in symptoms of seasonal affective disorder or winter blues from the end of daylight savings time. It almost seems like daylight savings ends at the wrong time of year - we are setting our clocks so the sun sets earlier when the sun sets earliest anyways.

Daylight savings used to be used for around half the year- but now it is more "standard" than standard time - with standard time only being used 4 months of the year in most US states. We are on daylight savings more than regular time. So , what would you think of permanent daylight savings time? It would eliminate the twice-annual hassle of becoming adjusted to a new time schedule and having to set clocks - it makes sense to keep the same time set all year. The time change is an outdated policy.

It would make the sun set a full hour later in winter. Many areas in the north US or in europe experience sunsets earlier than 5pm-before many people are off work from a 9-5 shift. Winter-time daylight savings would push this back to a more reasonable 5:30 or so. But it would make sunrise a full hour later.

But for many people, going home in the dark , and the early sunsets can contribute to winter depression -it's an actual psychiatric condition that many people suffer from- and it is possible that staying on daylight savings all year could help alleviate this.

While there are arguments for keeping it the other way - like children going to school in the dark - a large percentage of people would rather have more hours of sun in the afternoon in winter. So what do you think?

Re: Permanent daylight savings and winter blues/Seasonal depression

Excuse my language, but daylight savings is a complete bullshit construct. I'm from a state that doesn't acknowledge it, and I hate now being in a place that does. I don't really care which time they keep it with, the earlier or the later, but the entire concept should be abolished and we should stop with the whole idea. Here is a video on it that I agree with haha.

Re: Permanent daylight savings and winter blues/Seasonal depression

Before the time changed... For an example by 4pm it's already started to get dark. In the morning, it's dark at 7am still. It's only going to get worse once winter sets in. Today the sun set at 4:28pm and the sun rose at 7:08am.

I don't get depressed over the time change and it doesn't really affect me. What does is the time between Fall and Winter... where all the trees are naked and all you see is dead trees, it's kinda weird and doesn't feel like anything is alive. Once the snow arrives it's a lot better.

I think during the peak where the sun goes down or starts is 3:30pm, then slowly increases to later, then in the morning it's closer to 8am till the sun comes. Currently right now it's after 7am for the sunrise, and 4:30pm for the sun setting.

When I moved from South Western Ontario to Eastern Ontario, it was really weird having the sun go down so fast and how it was late for the sun to come up in the morning.

Re: Permanent daylight savings and winter blues/Seasonal depression

I was never really bothered by the time changes until I started new meds and now I hate it. It's surprisingly difficult to keep my med schedule the day it changes.