The symptoms of SAD that you will experience if you are in fact, affected by the disease, will occur annually every winteras soon as the days grow shorter and the dark hours increase. Depending on where you live, symptoms will begin approximately between late September and last up to the end of April.

The following are some of the telltale symptoms of SAD:

1)Trouble Sleeping:

Very often the patient or affected individual will suffer from a persistent desire to sleep and will have difficulty staying awake at all. However, despite taking naps, if the patient or affected individual does take naps, he or she will also suffer from extreme fatigue. This is because often the patient or affected individual will experience very interrupted sleep, with many moments of wakefulness breaking up his or her sleep cycle. Often this symptom will be accompanied waking very early in the mornings.

2) Lethargic state of mind:

There is in many cases, in addition to the fatigue, a sufferer may also exhibit signs of having trouble carrying out his or her obligations. The daily routine of the individual will be disrupted by a lack of desire to do anything, he or she may feel a bit guilty because of their unexplained unproductive nature, but this is typically ignored as a result of the illness.

SAD, if the case is extreme enough, has cost people their jobs and affected their families as well.

3) Depression:

The patient or affected individual will experience depression. This is the very most common symptom of SAD. Especially feelings of guilt, low self-image, hopelessness and misery, or the depression can take a different route and numb him or her completely, the apathetic state of depression can be very destructive as well.

4) Overeating:

Overeating is a very common symptom of SAD. The affected individual experiences cravings, primarily for foods containing sugars and other forms of carbohydrates, this usually results in weight gain and can therefore perpetuate the symptom of depression.

5) Anxiety:

a)Social anxiety:

The sufferer often tends to avoid social contact with almost anyone, they also experience irritability and frustration concerning social situations.

b)General anxiety:

Inability to cope with stress, (often stress relating to problems perpetuated by apathy and inability to perform everyday tasks), by loss of libido, and decreased physical contact with anyone, even his or her significant other.

On the flip side, the sufferer will often experience short periods of what is called hypomania, which means over-activity during the spring and summer. However, this kind of anxiety (if you would call it that) vanishes in the spring along with all of the other symptoms of SAD.

In the category of sub-syndromal SAD, symptoms such as tiredness, lethargy, sleep and eating problems occur, but depression and anxiety are absent or mild. So just because you do not demonstrate all of these symptoms, you could still be a victim of Seasonal Affective Disorder.

The good news is that there are lights and lamps that will help with your SAD significantly without the use of drugs or therapy. There are many such lamps and kinds of lighting to choose from. And it is absolutely worthwhile if you actually do have this unpleasant illness.