From Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD) to “happy lights” and the Tech Trails, winter at Michigan Tech raises questions about mental health and a larger one of how people should relate to the natural world. As winter approaches, spending more time indoors can become increasingly tempting. For some students, changes in the seasons can bring more than a dislike of the cold.
Seasonal affective disorder, or SAD, is a type of depression characterized by a recurring seasonal pattern. SAD typically begins during the fall or winter and can include persistent sadness, loss of interest in activities, difficulty concentrating, oversleeping, and social withdrawal.
For third-year civil engineering student Thor Eysturlid, “[Winters] can feel very isolating, like you’re the only one out in the cold harsh winter,” Eysturlid said, “The snow and wind can be very chilling, but it also zaps your mind into a calm state.”
Fourth-year human factors student Arianna Crossman similarly said, “Being cooped up inside for long periods of time begins to feel like I’m stuck, so I like to plan social things, so that I still have something to go do.”One option is for students to go outside on the Michigan Tech Trails. Currently enrolled students can access the trail through the Experience Tech Fee. Michigan Tech’s Outdoor Adventure Program (OAP) provides opportunities to rent outdoor recreation equipment. The program operates from Sharon Avenue on the south side of Michigan Tech at the main Tech Trails trailhead.
Both students describe spending time outside as a way to clear their heads. Eysturlid said he usually feels stressed before going to the trails but returns feeling “more calm and collected.” In turn, Crossman said “I like going on walks when I’m feeling stuck on something or I want to clear my head. Being outdoors really helps with that. Especially in a calm place like on the trails or by the water.”
Getting outdoors is not a replacement for treating SAD, but daylight and enjoyable outdoor activities can be useful for coping with milder seasonal mood changes. For winter-related SAD, light therapy, more commonly known as a Happy Light, is also a commonly used treatment. The National Institute of Mental Health describes standard light therapy as exposure to a 10,000-lux box for roughly 30 to 45 minutes, typically in the morning. Students have access to light boxes as well. According to Audrey Rainey, a librarian at the Library, “happy lights” are available to check out for up to four hours.
For Michael Paul Nelson, chair of the Department of Humanities and a professor of environmental ethics and philosophy, winter also raises the larger question about how people relate to nature. Nelson said environmental ethics challenges the idea that humans exist separately from the natural world. This view can reduce nature to something valuable only for human purposes
Rather than simply enduring winter from the indoors, Nelson said the UP has developed a culture that actively engages with it through skiing, festivals, and even the everyday preparations that come with heavy snow. Accessible outdoor spaces like the Tech Trails are an important part of the relationship he describes. “We have formalized outdoor spaces, we maintain and honor them in the winter,” Nelson said. “We are not a ‘muddle through winter’ campus or town — very much the opposite.
