Sunday, February 10, 2013 Steamboat Springs “Let the light shine
in.” That is Tom Traynor’s best advice to avoid developing a
type of depression called seasonal affective disorder, or SAD.
Traynor, a licensed clinical psychologist who has practiced in
Steamboat for 37 years, said SAD can result when the human brain
responds to the decrease in the amount of light it receives
during the shorter days of winter. Traynor said the theory of
SAD is that less light causes less stimulation of the brain, the
pituitary gland and therefore all other hormones in the body.
“It begins in a part of the brain called the SCHN, a group of
cells that sits next to the optic tract,” Traynor explains. “Its
only function is to measure the amount of light that the brain
or the eyes are exposed to. The SCHN then sends a signal to the
pituitary gland, which is the master signal gland for all of the
hormones in our body. Hormones regulate mood, appetite, sleep
and wakefulness, energy levels, sexual interest and a large
number of other f