# Fuck the assholes who named Seasonal Affective Disorder "S.A.D." **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [September 30, 2005, 2:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fuck-the-assholes-who-named-seasonal-affective-disorder-s-a-d/324135 "2005-09-30T02:04:08Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![TLDRIDKJKLOLFTW](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/51bf81/32.png) [@TLDRIDKJKLOLFTW](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TLDRIDKJKLOLFTW)\ **Post date:** [September 30, 2005, 2:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fuck-the-assholes-who-named-seasonal-affective-disorder-s-a-d/324135/1 "2005-09-30T02:04:08Z")
Every fall, I start to feel miserable and don’t feel better until the spring. I get depressed, exhausted, antisocial, grumpy, and my life generally turns to garbage. Someone somewhere finally officially recognized this phenomenon a few years ago as something legitimate that happens to many people and named it Seasonal Affective Disorder, or “S.A.D.” “Awwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww! Are you feeling a little SAD? Oopsie-whoopsie!” You know what? FUCK YOU GUYS. This is a serious problem that makes a bunch of people feel **really fucking horrible** for months on end every year, and you name it SAD? Could you be any more condescending and insulting? Do you ever wonder why there are so many suicides this time of year? SAD!? Are you fucking kidding me? I hope I can discover a new, particularly deadly form of cancer so that I can name it “O.U.C.H.I.E.” ---
**Author:** ![Amazon\_Floozy\_Goddess](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/779978/32.png) [@Amazon\_Floozy\_Goddess](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Amazon_Floozy_Goddess)\ **Post date:** [September 30, 2005, 2:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fuck-the-assholes-who-named-seasonal-affective-disorder-s-a-d/324135/2 "2005-09-30T02:13:24Z")
Yeah, they could have called it Seasonal Mood Disorder or something. But it’s much more fun if it makes a cute acronym. :rolleyes: I also am prone to this. According to my mom, weather and season changes affected my mood even as a baby. Makes me glad I don’t live in Nunavut or I’d probably really be a mess. ---
**Author:** ![TLDRIDKJKLOLFTW](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/51bf81/32.png) [@TLDRIDKJKLOLFTW](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TLDRIDKJKLOLFTW)\ **Post date:** [September 30, 2005, 2:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fuck-the-assholes-who-named-seasonal-affective-disorder-s-a-d/324135/3 "2005-09-30T02:17:32Z")
> [@Amazon Floozy Goddess](#): > > Yeah, they could have called it Seasonal Mood Disorder or something. But it’s much more fun if it makes a cute acronym. :rolleyes: > > I also am prone to this. According to my mom, weather and season changes affected my mood even as a baby. Makes me glad I don’t live in Nunavut or I’d probably really be a mess. I’m not sure why it’s not just called “Seasonal Depression” - that’s what it is. ---
**Author:** ![Stephe96](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/bbe5ce/32.png) [@Stephe96](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Stephe96)\ **Post date:** [September 30, 2005, 2:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fuck-the-assholes-who-named-seasonal-affective-disorder-s-a-d/324135/4 "2005-09-30T02:23:35Z")
Sounds like somebody has a case of the Mondays! ---
**Author:** ![zagloba](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/977dab/32.png) [@zagloba](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/zagloba)\ **Post date:** [September 30, 2005, 3:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fuck-the-assholes-who-named-seasonal-affective-disorder-s-a-d/324135/5 "2005-09-30T03:09:46Z")
> [@VCO3](#): > > I’m not sure why it’s not just called “Seasonal Depression” - that’s what it is. Depression would be an extreme manifestation of SAD. SAD covers a spectrum of undesirable changes in affect. A person may suffer from SAD to the point where treatment is desireable without meeting the criteria for a diagnosis for depression. ---
**Author:** ![Pedro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/919ad9/32.png) [@Pedro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pedro)\ **Post date:** [September 30, 2005, 12:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fuck-the-assholes-who-named-seasonal-affective-disorder-s-a-d/324135/6 "2005-09-30T12:48:16Z")
I think it’s funny. I’d rather be “sad” than afflicted with Seasonal Affective Disorder. That’s just sad. Having S.A.D that is. ---
**Author:** ![Helen\_s\_Eidolon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/8edcca/32.png) [@Helen\_s\_Eidolon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Helen_s_Eidolon)\ **Post date:** [September 30, 2005, 12:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fuck-the-assholes-who-named-seasonal-affective-disorder-s-a-d/324135/7 "2005-09-30T12:54:49Z")
I’ve never thought of it that way. I just usually call it ‘seasonal depression’ or ‘seasonal affective disorder’ all out. ---
**Author:** ![Nancarrow](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/c37758/32.png) [@Nancarrow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nancarrow)\ **Post date:** [September 30, 2005, 2:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fuck-the-assholes-who-named-seasonal-affective-disorder-s-a-d/324135/8 "2005-09-30T14:36:38Z")
Won’t somebody also please spare a thought for the wonderful people who named their pressure group “Scotland Against Drugs”? Seriously, commiserations on your seasonal bumming out. I get it too but not as bad as I used to. ---
**Author:** ![Spectre\_of\_Pithecanthropus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spectre_of_pithecanthropus/32/12343_2.png) [@Spectre\_of\_Pithecanthropus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spectre_of_Pithecanthropus)\ **Post date:** [September 30, 2005, 5:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fuck-the-assholes-who-named-seasonal-affective-disorder-s-a-d/324135/9 "2005-09-30T17:07:12Z")
Seasonal Affective Disorder? What’s that? d&r ---
**Author:** ![TLDRIDKJKLOLFTW](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/51bf81/32.png) [@TLDRIDKJKLOLFTW](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TLDRIDKJKLOLFTW)\ **Post date:** [September 30, 2005, 5:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fuck-the-assholes-who-named-seasonal-affective-disorder-s-a-d/324135/10 "2005-09-30T17:36:22Z")
[http://www.nmha.org/infoctr/factsheets/27.cfm](http://www.nmha.org/infoctr/factsheets/27.cfm) ---
**Author:** ![mswas](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e99b99/32.png) [@mswas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mswas)\ **Post date:** [September 30, 2005, 7:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fuck-the-assholes-who-named-seasonal-affective-disorder-s-a-d/324135/11 "2005-09-30T19:12:46Z")
But people with Seasonal Affective Disorder DO get sad? I think Sad is both accurate AND precise. I’m sorry if you think the word SAD isn’t emphatic enough to describe your depression, but depression is just deep sadness. Erek ---
**Author:** ![DocCathode](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/doccathode/32/18773_2.png) [@DocCathode](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DocCathode)\ **Post date:** [September 30, 2005, 7:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fuck-the-assholes-who-named-seasonal-affective-disorder-s-a-d/324135/12 "2005-09-30T19:30:56Z")
> [@Amazon Floozy Goddess](#): > > Yeah, they could have called it Seasonal Mood Disorder or something. But it’s much more fun if it makes a cute acronym. :rolleyes: The word “affect” has a specific meaning in psychology. While some people use the name “manic depression”, the proper name is “bipolar _affective_ disorder”. The DSM lists the symptoms of “flat affect” for several disorders. Last time I checked “mood” was not a recognized term in the field of psychology. Many terms in psychology and pychiatry are turned into initialisms. Why say attention deficit hyperactivy disorder and obsessive compulsive disorder when you can just say ADHD and OCD? ---
**Author:** ![alice\_in\_wonderland](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alice_in_wonderland/32/176_2.png) [@alice\_in\_wonderland](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/alice_in_wonderland)\ **Post date:** [September 30, 2005, 8:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fuck-the-assholes-who-named-seasonal-affective-disorder-s-a-d/324135/13 "2005-09-30T20:02:10Z")
> [@VCO3](#): > > I’m not sure why it’s not just called “Seasonal Depression” - that’s what it is. Except that’s not what it is. SAD is a cluster disorder, with a variety of symptoms, most of which are not depression. I have SAD and experience no depression. I just can’t drag my ass out of bed to save my life (even if the place was on fire), don’t think as clearly, etc, etc. I don’t get depressed at all. ---
**Author:** ![World\_Eater](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/f04885/32.png) [@World\_Eater](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/World_Eater)\ **Post date:** [September 30, 2005, 8:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fuck-the-assholes-who-named-seasonal-affective-disorder-s-a-d/324135/14 "2005-09-30T20:20:51Z")
> [@Stephe96](#): > > Sounds like somebody has a case of the Mondays! Wouldn’t it be a case of the Octobers? ---
**Author:** ![OtakuLoki](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/ac8455/32.png) [@OtakuLoki](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/OtakuLoki)\ **Post date:** [September 30, 2005, 8:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fuck-the-assholes-who-named-seasonal-affective-disorder-s-a-d/324135/15 "2005-09-30T20:44:19Z")
I think you’re pitting, specifically, some doctors here at [Strong Hospital](http://www.urmc.rochester.edu/). My father likes to say it’s not exactly surprising that S.A.D. was first described by health professionals in Rochester, NY. ---
**Author:** ![Brynda](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/e79b87/32.png) [@Brynda](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Brynda)\ **Post date:** [September 30, 2005, 11:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fuck-the-assholes-who-named-seasonal-affective-disorder-s-a-d/324135/16 "2005-09-30T23:49:23Z")
> [@mswas](#): > > But people with Seasonal Affective Disorder DO get sad? I think Sad is both accurate AND precise. I’m sorry if you think the word SAD isn’t emphatic enough to describe your depression, but depression is just deep sadness. > > Erek No, depression is not just deep sadness. Depression (or, more properly, Major Depressive Disorder) is a pathological condition in which one of the symptoms is sad mood, but it is not “just” sadness, deep or otherwise. To be diagnosed with MDD, the person has to have sad mood or lack of enjoyment/interest in usual activities for at least two weeks. They must also have 5 of the following: appetite or weight change, insomnia or hypersomnia, fatigue, thoughts of death or suicide, persistent feelings of disproportionate guilt, worthlessness, hopelessness, or low self-esteem, psychomotor agitation or retardation, and difficulty concentrating or making decisions. ---
**Author:** ![Catfood\_Purrito](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/c6cbf5/32.png) [@Catfood\_Purrito](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Catfood_Purrito)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2005, 12:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fuck-the-assholes-who-named-seasonal-affective-disorder-s-a-d/324135/17 "2005-10-01T00:08:21Z")
> [@](#): > > Last time I checked “mood” was not a recognized term in the field of psychology. Then why does every doctor I’ve transcribed a psychiatric note for refer to the patient’s **mood** and affect in the mental status exam? And if you do a [Google search](http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&q=%22mood+disorder%22&btnG=Google+Search) for mood disorder, you’ll see many reputable sites using this terminology. ---
**Author:** ![Mama\_Tiger](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/6de8d8/32.png) [@Mama\_Tiger](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mama_Tiger)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2005, 12:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fuck-the-assholes-who-named-seasonal-affective-disorder-s-a-d/324135/18 "2005-10-01T00:17:17Z")
> [@](#): > > While some people use the name “manic depression”, the proper name is “bipolar affective disorder”. Oh, wonderful. It will just _thrill_ my bipolar sister to be told now she’s B.A.D. ---
**Author:** ![Wolfian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/7ea924/32.png) [@Wolfian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wolfian)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2005, 1:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fuck-the-assholes-who-named-seasonal-affective-disorder-s-a-d/324135/19 "2005-10-01T01:06:20Z")
> [@OtakuLoki](#): > > My father likes to say it’s not exactly surprising that S.A.D. was first described by health professionals in Rochester, NY. As a former CNYer, indeed. ---
**Author:** ![DocCathode](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/doccathode/32/18773_2.png) [@DocCathode](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DocCathode)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2005, 5:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fuck-the-assholes-who-named-seasonal-affective-disorder-s-a-d/324135/20 "2005-10-01T05:11:20Z")
> [@Mishell](#): > > Then why does every doctor I’ve transcribed a psychiatric note for refer to the patient’s **mood** and affect in the mental status exam? Obviously things have changed since the last time I checked. 😃 [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fuck-the-assholes-who-named-seasonal-affective-disorder-s-a-d/324135.md?page=2)