Mental Disorders: How Climate Affects Emotions

Emotions are feelings and the way people feel about things. Emotions are not only crying or laughing. A person's mood and their emotions are very similar, and are impacted mostly by the same type of things. The weather and climate can have serious affects on lifestyles and health. Weather can not only have an impact on where people live, but it can also affect emotions and how people feel.
Seasonal Affective Disorder is a condition in which a type of depression is caused by the changing of the seasons. This disorder occurs in the fall and winter months when the weather gets colder and the days get shorter ("Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD)"). Therapy is recommended for people diagnosed with Seasonal Affective Disorder. A form of therapy commonly
As well as emotions, climate has an impact on health. Changes in the normal climate can have a big impact on health. Every year, most people fall sick with allergies or a cold in the winter months. When the temperature rises or drops dramatically, health problems are more at risk than normal. Extreme high temperatures puts people more at risk for many health problems, including heat stroke and dehydration ("Climate Impacts on Human Health"). Another issue that makes health problems more common in the U.S. is the air quality. According to the EPA, "Warmer temperatures and shifting weather patterns can worsen air quality, which can lead to asthma attacks and other respiratory and cardiovascular health effects." Poor air quality or pollution in the air can trigger an asthma attack. About 17.7 million adults and 6.3 million children in the U.S. have asthma, which would put a large number of people at risk for an attack in bad air quality
People with mental illnesses are more at risk for problems in extreme climates ("Climate Impacts on Human Health"). "Studies have found that having a pre-existing mental illness tripled the risk of death during heat waves.", according to the EPA. People with mental illnesses, like anxiety and depression, tend to get nervous easily and react in obsessive or absurd ways. Quick changes in the climate could put excess stress on people affected by a type of mental illness. This excess stress put on them could cause an attack or breakdown to occur, resulting in more problems in the future. Extreme temperature changes can cause mental exhaustion, which is related to mental illnesses. Heat waves have been shown to trigger anxiety and mood disorders. Studies show suicides rates are higher in the summer months and aggressive behaviors have been linked to extreme temperature changes (Padhy). Many people in the world suffer from a type of mental illness, and extreme conditions are putting them in distress and making their condition