Table of contents:
- A dark, lonely, and calm atmosphere triggers symptoms of depression at night
- Depression symptoms often appear at night because you don't get sunlight
- Watching TV and playing cellphones before bed can make you depressed at night
- Symptoms and signs of depression at night
Depressed individuals often appear normal - even cheerful - most of the time they are on the move. However, for some people, their depressive symptoms can recur only at night. Depression is a mental disorder that is different from stress and should not be underestimated. So, what causes recurrence of depression at night? Are the symptoms different from depression in general?
A dark, lonely, and calm atmosphere triggers symptoms of depression at night
After going through a lot of hustle and bustle here and there throughout the day, most people will take advantage of the free time at night before bedtime to relax and relax and relax the mind. However, in some people who have depression, this calm and lonely atmosphere can trigger a recurrence of depressive symptoms at night due to lack of activity before bedtime.
Towards evening, there will be fewer activities that can be done because of the limited time as well as the natural response of the body to ask for rest. The lack of activity at night leaves plenty of time for the brain to reflect. Thoughts that are left wandering without focus can lead to feelings of loneliness at night, which makes the brain unable to control negative thoughts and emotions, such as disappointment, fear, and despair and despair, leading to recurring symptoms of depression.
What's more, a study from England reported that feeling lonely can make it difficult to sleep well, which can worsen depressive symptoms at night. The longer you stay awake at night, the more time your brain will have to focus on thinking about negative things that it dreads. The more busy your brain is thinking about nonsense, the more difficult it is for you to sleep well. Insomnia has been reported to worsen depression symptoms.
That's why depressed people tend to experience less symptoms during the day when they're busy. Busyness during the day makes depression symptoms more manageable because their brains are constantly forced to focus on doing or thinking about other things.
Depression symptoms often appear at night because you don't get sunlight
Symptoms of depression at night can also recur due to the body not getting enough sun exposure such as when you do activities during the day. Research shows that people who lack sunlight tend to be more prone to depression and frequent emotional distress.
As is well known, sun exposure is the greatest source of vitamin D which is good for the body. Adequate vitamin D intake can help relieve depression. Apart from that, the UV rays of the sun also stimulate keratinocyte cells in the skin to create beta-endorphins, a hormone that makes your mood better. The hormone serotonin, which also helps improve mood and stamina, also reacts positively to sunlight.
What happens at night is just the opposite. The calm, cool, and dark atmosphere triggers the body to increase the production of the hormone melatonin which causes you to feel sleepy and tired more quickly after sunset. This melancholy mood at night can trigger a depression relapse.
Watching TV and playing cellphones before bed can make you depressed at night
Who, the hell, has never watched TV, opened a laptop, or played cellphones before going to bed? It seems that almost everyone has done this at least once in their life. Even so, this habit seems to need to be stopped especially if you have depression.
Reporting from Healthline, exposure to blue light from gadget screens at night not only makes it difficult for you to sleep, but also at risk of causing depression to recur.
When you spend time watching TV or playing on your cellphone before going to bed, the bright rays from the screen mimic the nature of natural sunlight, which actually makes you more energized because the body increases the production of the stress hormone cortisol. Excess cortisol levels in the body can make nighttime depressive symptoms worse.
Symptoms and signs of depression at night
Depressive symptoms often appear near bedtime, when the brain is focused solely on sleeping in the absence of other intruders.
Signs and symptoms of depression at night include:
- Sad feeling.
- Restless.
- Irritable.
- Feel lonely.
- Feelings of hopelessness and worthlessness.
- Feeling deprived of pleasure from things that were once pleasurable.
- Lack of energy or powerless.
- Difficulty concentrating or making decisions.
- In serious cases, you may feel suicidal or think about death.