Understanding Seasonal Affective Disorder + Grief

If you’ve noticed your grief creeping closer these days, settling into your chest a little heavier, or making everything feel just a bit… stickier, you’re not imagining it. The seasons are changing, daylight is disappearing early, and your nervous system is feeling it.

Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD) can make grief louder. And grief can make SAD hit harder. It’s a two-way punch that most people aren’t prepared for.

So let’s talk about it. Let’s make it make sense.

First, What Even Is Seasonal Affective Disorder?

Seasonal Affective Disorder is a form of depression tied to seasonal changes, usually fall and winter. As the sunlight drops, so does serotonin. And our circadian rhythms get thrown off. Your body and brain are basically trying to function on dimmer lighting than they were designed for (source).

Common symptoms include:

• Low energy or fatigue

• Brain fog

• Sadness or irritability

• Increased sleep or trouble getting out of bed

• Cravings for carbs and comfort food

• Feeling disconnected from normal routines

• Loss of interest in things you usually enjoy

Now drop grief into that mix and the whole system can feel overloaded.

Why SAD Can Make Grief Hit Harder

Grief is already a full-body, full-heart experience. It impacts sleep, appetite, energy, concentration, your immune system, and your ability to regulate emotions.

SAD affects those exact same areas.

So when both show up at the same time, your baseline is lower and your emotional capacity shrinks. You’re not doing anything wrong. Your body is responding to two stressors at once.

Here’s how they can collide:

1. Low sunlight intensifies emotional sensitivity

Less sunlight affects serotonin — the chemical that helps stabilize mood. When serotonin dips, sadness, loneliness, and heaviness feel amplified. So memories hit harder. Small triggers feel bigger. Ordinary moments feel soaked in emotion.

2. You’re more tired, which means less resilience

Grief already drains energy. SAD stacks on chronic fatigue. When you’re tired, even simple tasks feel huge. And grief tasks, like holding memories, managing emotions, or navigating family dynamics, feel enormous.

3. Winter brings natural reminders of the person you miss

The holidays. Anniversaries. Quiet nights. Empty chairs at dinner. Longer evenings mean more stillness. Stillness creates room for grief to echo.

4. Reduced daylight disrupts your routine

Grief loves routine. Routines keep you moving when your inner world feels chaotic. But when it’s dark at 4:30 pm and your body wants to hibernate, routines get shaky. Unstructured time can give grief more space to expand.

5. Social withdrawal increases loneliness

When your energy dips, you socialize less. And grief is already isolating. That combination can make you feel forgotten, misunderstood, or especially alone.

What You’re Feeling Is Real. And It Makes Sense.

If winter has you in your feelings, overwhelmed, snappy, exhausted, or suddenly back in a grief wave you thought you already “worked through,” nothing is wrong with you. Your grief hasn’t gotten worse. Your brain and body are simply trying to regulate in a challenging environment.

Let’s talk about ways to support both.

How to Support Yourself When SAD and Grief Show Up Together

1. Increase your light

Light therapy can be a game changer for SAD. Even 10–15 minutes in the morning helps signal your brain to wake up and regulate mood. Open blinds, step outside, sit near a window. Small things count.

2. Anchor your days with micro-routines

You don’t need perfect structure. You just need touchpoints. Try:

• Morning hydration

• A midday walk

• One nourishing meal

• A nightly wind-down ritual

Routines support your nervous system when grief and SAD stretch you thin.

3. Move your body gently

Movement boosts serotonin and breaks up emotional stagnation. Think walks, stretching, yoga, short strength sessions. No need for perfection. Just motion.

4. Let yourself feel without judgment

If grief feels heavier right now, name it. “This is grief season. This is SAD season. My body is responding.” Naming gives your feelings a place to land and reduces fear.

5. Increase connection in small, doable ways

Call one friend. Go to a weekly class. Ask someone to check on you. Connection is a buffer to both depression and grief.

6. Nourish your body

Warm foods, fiber, protein, hydration. Your brain needs fuel to regulate emotions and cope with loss.

7. Revisit coping strategies that help your grief

Journaling, breathing exercises,  remembering rituals, therapy, or grief groups. Check what’s helped you before and bring it back online.

8. Get professional support if needed

SAD and grief together can be an emotional avalanche. Therapy can help you understand what’s yours, what’s seasonal, and what your nervous system needs. There is no shame in needing help. You’re carrying a lot.

A Reminder for Your Heart

Just because grief feels heavier doesn’t mean you’re going backwards. You’re not “starting over.” You’re not failing at healing. You’re not doing winter wrong. You’re a human with a sensitive, loving, grieving heart living through a natural seasonal shift that affects your biology.

You deserve gentleness this time of year. You deserve support. You deserve light — literally and emotionally. And if this is a hard season for you, you’re not alone. Grief and SAD may both be part of your story right now, but neither defines your whole story.

You’re still healing. You’re still growing. You’re still moving through. One softer, slower, more intentional step at a time.