Staying positive in Alaska
November 5, 2007
Today our sunrise was at 8:35 am and our sun-
set was at 4:49 pm. 8 hours and 15 minutes of
daylight. Everyday between now and 12/21
we lose more than 5 minutes of daylight.
After the 12/21 we savor the idea that we are
getting more daylight each day until June 21st
when we only have a few hours of colorful
twilight and total darkness.
This time of year most people go to work in
the dark and come home in the dark.
The positive side of our darkness is that here
in southern Alaska we have long and
colorful sunrises and sunsets and the
light of the white snow.
We also have Northern Lights and as one
travels north ( and lose more daylight)
they become more vivid and prevalent.
While we Alaskans love our sunny
days and nights in the summer, our winters
challenge each of us. Winter teaches us
new things about what keeps us going
as we figure out how to make it through
another dark, cold day. For me it is a com-
bination of developing close friendships, broad-
ening my mind, enjoying my work, being physi-
cally active outdoors and being involved with
communities of people.
Anchorage is alive with opportunities to be
active in anything imaginable and things that
only Alaskans could dream up (snowshoe
softball, ice bowling). However, the biggest
obstacle can be getting out of bed or off the
couch on a dark, cold day.
On Saturday and Sunday whether it’s 20
degrees above zero or below zero, I head off
to cross country ski, down hill ski or walk.
If I really have it together it’s mid day when
what sun we have is the strongest and the day
is the warmest. I found that having really
warm and comfortable winter gear is critical.
In the darkest part of the year I
use a high intensity (SAD) light to
keep my energy and mood positive. I can tell
that my mind wants the light and my body
wants that warmth of a bright thing shining
on me.
Last year some medical professionals in
the community started testing people for
Vitamin D deficiency. They discovered that
most Alaskans could feel lots better if they
took D supplements. Our bodies get vitamin
D naturally from our skin being touched by
sunlight for a period of time on a daily basis.
It turns out that feeling positive here in
Alaska takes determination, initiative
and an astute medical professional.
Elayne Hunter
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I couldn’t understand some parts of this article Staying positive in Alaska, but I guess I just need to check some more resources regarding this, because it sounds interesting.
Daniel I’m guessing that you are not familiar with SAD or Seasonal Affective Disorder. Many people find that their mood is heavier and their energy is lower during the months when there is less daylight. There are special high intensity lights that are used to try to reverse this pattern.