Hope Haven women’ s shelter is hosting sessions over a nearly two-month-long period dedicated to helping women with seasonal affective disorder. The sessions will start on Feb.
Hope Haven women’ s shelter is hosting sessions over a nearly two-month-long period dedicated to helping women with seasonal affective disorder.
The sessions will start on Feb. 2 and will go on until March 30, and each session will go from noon to 1:00 p.m. each day.
Seasonal affective disorder is a subtype of depression that’ s marked by changes in seasons. The most common type is when depression comes on in winter and lifts by summer.
The American Association of Family Physicians estimates that four to six per cent of people may have the disorder and that it’ s four times more common in women than men. It’ s also more common in northern climates.
Jodi Weening is working on her master’ s of counselling and is doing her practicum at Hope Haven. Her responsibility will be to facilitate the group and will also give one-on-one counselling.
Weening said that the sessions are intended as a place for women to feel supported.
“What happens during the sessions depends on who comes in and what’ s necessary,” she said. “Materials will be presented for education and women can also be referred for 1-on-1 counselling.”
She said the inspiration for the event came from talking to people and recognizing that seasonal affective disorder was a broader issue that had to be dealt with.
“We were recognizing that it had to be discussed. It was particularly an issue for the women’ s shelter because women suffer from it more than men and we live far north where it really affects people,” she said.
