Banish the Winter Blues Naturally

Tom Sykes used to think that the "winter blues" were a con, but now he's seen the light, and he explains how you can, too.

Seasonal affective disorder – SAD – was something I used to think people made up as an excuse to be grumpy.

Seriously, how could a lack of sunlight make you depressed?

And then I returned to the UK after living in America for four years.

One of the things I loved most about America – even more than free coffee refills – was the crisp, sunny winters. Even between December and February, you can average five hours of sunshine per day.

In London, we get one hour in December, and two in January and February.

My first winter in the UK for four years hit me with an almighty wallop. On the outside everything was going well – our first child was even sleeping through the night – so why did I want to crawl under the duvet and stay there until June?

A friend suggested I might suffer from SAD, but I pooh-poohed her suggestion. Read more