It's So Cold in the 'Cuse

Because there's not as much daylight during the wintertime, such as in places like Central New York, seasonal depression is not usually found in countries within 30 degrees of the Equator, where places have more sunshine than most year round, according to www.WebMD.com. What is seasonal depression you ask? It's having normal health throughout the whole year, but feeling depressed in the winter. Some symptoms of seasonal depression, according to http://psychology.suite101.com/article.cfm/what_are_the_winter_blues#ixzz0dM0rK7va, include:

* Feelings of sadness, hopelessness;
* Anxiety;
* A loss of energy and a tendency to oversleep;
* Withdrawing socially, and losing interest in previously enjoyed activities;
* Difficulty concentrating or focusing;
* Changes in appetite; a craving for carbohydrates like bread, pasta, cookies; and
* Weight gain.

Although people at Jamesville-Dewitt High School don't seem to have seasonal depression, they still feel a case of the winter blues.

Molly Lenehan, a freshman at J-DHS says that the winter is pretty, but it makes her cold. Her favorite season is spring, because it's nice out, and she doesn't feel she has seasonal depression and in order to continue to have a good time in the wintertime, she "stays inside where it's warm."

Kayla Barletta, a junior, says that winter makes her sad because it's dark out in the morning. Her favorite season is spring because "everything is fresh." She doesn't have seasonal depression, but she goes to the gym to make her day better anyway.

Junior Marie Jorgensen also says the winter weather doesn't really affect her. "My favorite season is fall, because it's pretty and the weather is the right temperature for me." She doesn't have seasonal depression, and she says "I watch movies when it's bad out, like "The Hangover" with my friends." She also listens to music.

Christian Sias, a senior, moved here from Oklahoma not too long ago, and he says the winters here are horrible, as opposed to his warmer weather back home. "I'm naturally warm-blooded," he jokes, "so the summer is my favorite season." He tries to stay at home to keep out of the winter weather "“ that is, until he went sledding in gym class recently. "It was awesome and it was my first time; I really want to go again!"

Junior Monica Piccolo says she isn't as happy in the winter as she is in the summer. "Summer is my favorite season because it's warm and there's more things to do." She doesn't have seasonal depression and in the winter she tries to get outside when it isn't too bad out, and keeps busy on the school's basketball team.

Jamie Crawford, Global 9 History teacher at J-DHS, admits to feeling down during the wintertime. She says she doesn't have it, but that the season definitely has a negative affect on her mood. "I try to exercise as much as possible," she said about what cheers her up. She described herself feeling "lethargic" during this time. Her favorite season is spring. "It's because winter's over but it's not as hot as summer."

Mike Keefe, the very popular science teacher at J-DHS, unfortunately demonstrates seasonal depression. The winter weather "makes me feel like crap" he said. But in order to get over this depression, he gets up early in the morning to go skiing. He enjoys the summer because it's warm and there's a lot of light.

Amy Boettger, a chemistry teacher at J-DHS, says that winter makes her very tired. "Summer is my favorite season because I really like the long days," she says. She thought she may have had seasonal depression but then decided against it once she heard what the official symptoms were. To cheer herself up, she usually visits her friend in Virginia, where the climate is warmer. She tries to "escape if at all possible" from here.

With only a few more winter months to go, can J-DHS defeat adversity and survive the cold weather?