Do you know how strongly weather affects our mood?
By Laman Sadigova
The unexplained and strange phenomena that seemed to be magic in my childhood bothered me for a long time. My old, grouchy neighbor could identify changes in the weather by the pain in her legs. She rubbed her wrinkled knees and said that we have to dress warmly tomorrow as the weather will get colder.
When I got older, I found out that a human body can indeed “communicate” with environment and, miracle or not, it even has its own regularities.
Of course, you can think that you just woke up on the wrong side of bed, but there are other things at play here such as… the weather.
People that have problems with blood pressure, rheumatism and migraines can feel the negative impacts of weather fluctuations change the day before it happens. They can easily predict rains or storms while being tormented by a headache. Irritability, heart pain, headaches, weakness, drowsiness, fatigue, a lack of energy and many other symptoms can follow you during those days.
Forecasters always warn people about such changes a few days before, often explaining such phenomena with solar flares or other space changes. People with chronic diseases are more likely to react to changes in weather, and we must look for the causes of these reactions.
Moreover, weather can also impact on our mood. People exposed depression can feel apathy in gray and dull days. However, even those seemingly happy all the time could experience a lack of sunlight and become sad.
Research has proven that warm temperatures and exposure to sunshine have the greatest positive impact on moods.
It is a widespread fact that people in sunny countries are more positive and emotional. On the opposite, inhabitants of north cold countries are often mentally “colder.”
Weather can also show the secret sides of your mental state. For example, rain can calm you down as it is proven that water softens nerves.
Even Hippocrates held regular meteorological observations and defined climate dependency as a seasonal alternation, exacerbating of various diseases. In his books about epidemic diseases description each one begins with the theory about weather influence.
According to medical data, more than 70 percent of people are sensitive to weather instability. This usually occurs when the body is under some sort of additional burden. It may be psychological stress, recovery from illness, chronic disease, hormonal changes, acclimatization or other factors.
While there is no official diagnosis for such ailments, it affects not only the elderly, but also young and even little children. Residents of big cities are more prone to the weather’s influence on the body.
Cures for such ailments have not been invented yet, but in order to be in harmony with nature, we must firstly treat ourselves better. Particular attention should be paid to nutrition. Food should be nourishing but not heavy. Eat more fruits and vegetables.
You should to do breathing exercises and gentle massage of the neck area in the morning, not to forget about the rules of personal hygiene, follow weather forecasts, monitor your blood pressure and keep it at a normal level for your body, take painkillers and anti-inflammatory drugs prescribed by the doctor.
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