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Research Outline

Prepared for Amara S. | Delivered October 16, 2019

Psychotherapy Visits in Autumn

Goals

To find out if there is an uptick in doctor visits or psychotherapy visits in autumn (fall), as well as any reasons (such as seasonal affective disorder, SAD) that might be responsible for this increase.

Early Findings

  • According to Norman Rosenthal, seasonal affective disorder (SAD), is a "mood disorder characterized by recurring depression in autumn and winter, separated by periods of nondepression in spring and summer".
  • As the days become progressively shorter in autumn, people spend more hours in darkness. As a result, people who are susceptible to SAD usually develop atypical depressive symptoms.
  • In a study conducted by the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH), the patients were found to experience more episodes of depression in fall and winter.
  • Arnold Lieber also mentioned that most people begin to notice SAD symptoms from fall. These symptoms increase during winter months. Just a few people experience SAD during spring and summer.
  • In addition to this public search, we scanned our proprietary research database of over 1 million sources and were unable to find any specific research reports that address your goals.