Technically, it’s still summer, but the shorter days tell the truth: it’s on its last legs. I’m an early riser, but even for me it’s been getting tougher to really feel ready to get up—even after seven or eight hours of sleep—when it’s still pretty dark out.
 
While I, fortunately, have never experienced Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD), it’s the season’s shorter days that have traditionally been what health experts have long pointed to as the cause of the disorder, and many SAD patients are treated with light therapy. But recently, a research team at the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health conducted a study that was published in the Archives of General Psychiatry. The scientists have discovered a new reason some people get the winter blues: during winter, they have elevated levels of a protein that clears seratonin—a chemical that’s instrumental in regulating mood, energy levels and appetite—from the brain.

Still, for many of us, shortening days does seem to equal a slower start in the morning. And as I said, that includes me! So, does anyone have any tips to make kick-starting my day a little bit easier?