The nights are getting shorter, the peonies are blooming like rockets, and where are we? We’d like to close our eyes and block out the rest of the spring awakening. The reason is simple: we are exhausted!
Getting up is only partially effective, and when we do, we dangle before the laptop like wet sacks. What’s the deal with us? We should be bursting with good spirits and a thirst for action in anticipation of the long-awaited sun, actually. Instead, we clearly belong to the “Hibernation” faction.
Does spring fatigue really exist?
We’re not kidding when we say we’re exhausted. Spring fatigue is a well-documented phenomenon that occurs primarily at the start of the new season, when the first pleasant days have passed. It is most prevalent in latitudes where there are significant changes in light and temperature with the changing seasons. To put it another way, when it’s cold and dark early in the winter and we can sit outside in T-shirts for hours in the summer.
The change from winter to spring makes us tired.
We humans (like animals) are adaptation masters. Our metabolism and hormones adjust to the environment. In the winter, our bodies protect themselves by lowering their temperature by a few tenths. Blood pressure rises, and the sleep hormone melatonin is produced in greater quantities.
This is what happens in the body during spring fatigue.
Everything takes time since the body has to settle down first. The difficulty is that as soon as he does that, spring returns. This necessitates a new modification for the body. The metabolism and hormonal balance are completely out of whack. Also, melatonin declines gradually. Dizziness and persistent weariness are common side effects.
