Health Anxiety: Managing Health Anxiety Coping Strategies
- Beverley Sinclair Hypnotherapist
- Jun 14
- 2 min read
For many, it is unsurprising that depression, anxiety, and fatigue, referred to as Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD). However, people may be surprised that SAD can occur in summer too. Furthermore, around 10% of people with winter SAD may also be struggling with summer SAD.
What Is Summertime SAD?
While we associate SAD with gloomy winter conditions, SAD simply occurs when the body struggles to adjust to different seasons. More people struggle with shorter days and a lack of sunlight in winter. However, if the long days and warm weather have got you feeling the summertime sadness, then you are not alone.
It is thought that summertime SAD may be linked to a lack of melatonin production. With longer days, the body struggles to regulate the sleep/wake cycle and can reduce melatonin, which can make it difficult to fall asleep. This tiredness, coupled with exhaustion, the impact of post-lockdown, and the fact that social media is full of people having fun in the sun, can all cause the summer blues.
Triggers for SAD include;
Seasonal body image concerns
Reduced sleep
Socialising and post-lockdown anxiety
Irregular sleep/wake cycle and routine
Too much sun
Feeling stressed and busy
Diary overwhelm.
Symptoms Of SAD
Tiredness and restlessness
Trouble sleeping or lack of sleep
Reduced appetite
Weight loss
Agitation
Anxiety and worrying
Overwhelming sadness and depression.
Accept Your Feelings
When it appears that everyone is happier during the summer, it can intensify your own feelings if you're not feeling your best. The most effective way to cope with this is to acknowledge your emotions and understand that they may indicate seasonal affective disorder. Keeping track of your feelings daily and reminding yourself to practice self-care can be beneficial.
Seek Support
You don’t have to experience SAD alone, and finding a therapist who can work with you through this can be a big help. I offer a blended hypnotherapy treatment to help clients experiencing SAD manage the overwhelm and sadness that may be impacting them.
Breathing Exercises
Deep and relaxed breathing slows the sympathetic nervous system, reduces anxiety, and engages the parasympathetic nervous system, promoting calm, focus, and rational decision-making.
Hypnotherapy and Anxiety
Hypnotherapy for anxiety works by effectively re-setting your anxiety level to ‘healthy’. It clears your subconscious of the negative and unhealthy beliefs that drive your anxiety. With our tailored Hypnotherapy sessions, you will learn to respond to life without becoming anxious. You'll regulate your emotions more effectively so that you remain relaxed in situations that would typically trigger your anxiety attacks. Hypnotherapy helps your mind to relax and will help you regain confidence, enthusiasm, and motivation in your daily life.
It is important to remember that anxiety attacks are based on a particular mental state and can be treated with different forms of cognitive or behavioural therapies. Using hypnotherapy and a variety of therapeutic techniques, psychotherapy combines with hypnotherapy. This form of therapy allows clients to release emotions in a supportive environment, enabling each client to move forward without carrying the burden of past anxiety.
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