Jan. 24th, the most depressing day of the year

[Joe]

link

LONDON - Is the midwinter weather wearing you down? Are you sinking in debt after the holidays? Angry with yourself for already breaking your New Year's resolutions? Wish you could crawl back under the covers and not have to face another day of rain, sleet, snow and paperwork? Probably. After all, it's nearly Jan. 24, the "most depressing day of the year," according to a U.K. psychologist.

Dr. Cliff Arnall's calculations show that misery will peak this Monday.

Arnall, who specializes in seasonal disorders at the University of Cardiff, Wales, created a formula that takes into account numerous feelings to devise peoples' lowest point.

The model is: [W + (D-d)] x TQ
M x NA

The equation is broken down into seven variables: (W) weather, (D) debt, (d) monthly salary, (T) time since Christmas, (Q) time since failed quit attempt, (M) low motivational levels and (NA) the need to take action.

‘Reality starts to kick in’
Arnall found that while days technically get longer after Dec. 21, cyclonic weather systems take hold in January, bringing low, dark clouds to Britain. Meanwhile, the majority of people break their healthy resolutions six to seven days into the new year, and even the hangers-on have fallen off the wagon, torn off the nicotine patches and eaten the fridge empty by the third week. Any residual dregs of holiday cheer and family fun have kicked the bucket by Jan. 24.

"Following the initial thrill of New Year's celebrations and changing over a new leaf, reality starts to sink in," Arnall said. "The realization coincides with the dark clouds rolling in and the obligation to pay off Christmas credit card bills."

The formula was devised to help a travel company "analyze when people book holidays and holiday trends," said Alex Kennedy, spokesperson for Porter Novelli, a London-based PR agency.

It seems that people are most likely to buy a ticket to paradise when they feel like hell.

"People feel bleak when they have nothing planned, but once they book a holiday they have a goal, they work toward having time off and a relaxing period," said Kennedy.

"When you imagine yourself on the beach it makes you feel positive. You will save money, go to the gym and come back to the optimism you had at the end of 2004," she said.

Up to a third suffer from winter depression
Research shows an escape to the sun can have real health benefits.

Up to a third of the population, in Britain at least, suffers from seasonal affective disorder, or SAD, also known as winter depression, according to MIND, a leading mental health charity in England and Wales. Furthermore, nine out of 10 people report sleeping and eating more during the darker months.

While most cases of the winter blues are not severe, 2 percent to 5 percent of those with SAD cannot function without continuous treatment.

However, it's extremely rare to find anyone with the disorder within 30 degrees of the equator, where days are long and the sky is bright year-round, according to MIND.

Although their findings appear to support a key factor in Arnall's research for Porter Novelli and its client, Sky Travel, the charity warned against overemphasizing the psychologist's claims.

“These types of formulae, if anything, probably serve to oversimplify the complexities of real-life experience," a spokesperson said on customary condition of anonymity.

Others in the medical field were less skeptical.

“I’m sure it's right,” said Dr. Alan Cohen, spokesperson for the Royal College of General Practitioners, referring to Arnall's equation.

However, “it is postulated that there are a number of different causes of depression,” he said.

“It may be something about one’s personality, genes or external events. For those who suffer from external events, [Jan. 24] would be the most depressing day," said Cohen.

While travel companies hope to turn gloom into gold this Monday, for those unable to book a last-minute tropical getaway, Arnall might want to consider a formula for the "happiest day of the year."

Honestly, I think they're onto something. Even though this study was clearly based on Brits I routinely get depressed during the month and a half following Christmas and am constantly lethargic, even on days where I got a good eight hours of sleep the night before. I usually don't fully rebound until around spring break.

[aerius]

I found that when I was in school and too busy to get outside enough, I drop into a slump sometime in November and don't snap out of it until Easter. Now that I'm working and have lots of time to go outside, play hockey, and do stuff, my slump comes to end around christmas which is when the outdoor ice rinks open. It's that month, month & half before the rinks open that kills me since the weather's all shitty and I have nothing to do.

[Enforcer Talen]

dude, its my first canceled school day.

partayyyyyyy!11

[Durandal]

The model is: [W + (D-d)] x TQ
M x NA

The equation is broken down into seven variables: (W) weather, (D) debt, (d) monthly salary, (T) time since Christmas, (Q) time since failed quit attempt, (M) low motivational levels and (NA) the need to take action.

Once again, psychologists definitively show that they don't know shit about math. Debt and monthly salary are measured in units of currency; weather has no unit. And even if it had one, it certainly wouldn't be one of currency. You can only add or subtract two values if they're of the same unit.

But, supposing that weather has units of currency (however that would work), the output unit of the top equation would be currency • time², which is just nonsensical.

And the bottom equation ... what the fuck are "motivational levels" and "needs to take action" measured in? Oh right, probably one of those ridiculous, catch-all "1 to 10" scales.

[darthdavid]

The model is: [W + (D-d)] x TQ
M x NA

The equation is broken down into seven variables: (W) weather, (D) debt, (d) monthly salary, (T) time since Christmas, (Q) time since failed quit attempt, (M) low motivational levels and (NA) the need to take action.

Once again, psychologists definitively show that they don't know shit about math. Debt and monthly salary are measured in units of currency; weather has no unit. And even if it had one, it certainly wouldn't be one of currency. You can only add or subtract two values if they're of the same unit.

But, supposing that weather has units of currency (however that would work), the output unit of the top equation would be currency • time², which is just nonsensical.

And the bottom equation ... what the fuck are "motivational levels" and "needs to take action" measured in? Oh right, probably one of those ridiculous, catch-all "1 to 10" scales.

The math is bogus but the general idea is right. Debt, sucky weather, broken resolutions and general apathy all tend to converge on the tail end of january.

[SyntaxVorlon]

The model is: [W + (D-d)] x TQ
M x NA

The equation is broken down into seven variables: (W) weather, (D) debt, (d) monthly salary, (T) time since Christmas, (Q) time since failed quit attempt, (M) low motivational levels and (NA) the need to take action.

Once again, psychologists definitively show that they don't know shit about math. Debt and monthly salary are measured in units of currency; weather has no unit. And even if it had one, it certainly wouldn't be one of currency. You can only add or subtract two values if they're of the same unit.

But, supposing that weather has units of currency (however that would work), the output unit of the top equation would be currency • time², which is just nonsensical.

And the bottom equation ... what the fuck are "motivational levels" and "needs to take action" measured in? Oh right, probably one of those ridiculous, catch-all "1 to 10" scales.

The math is bogus but the general idea is right. Debt, sucky weather, broken resolutions and general apathy all tend to converge on the tail end of january.

True but I agree with Durandal that the idiotic false erudition is annoying. "Looky we psyk majors can do math too!"

[Durandal]

True but I agree with Durandal that the idiotic false erudition is annoying. "Looky we psyk majors can do math too!"

And another thing. How do you get a date from that equation? Is the output number the day in January that's most depressing? Or is it the number of days after Christmas that the most depressing day of the year will fall on? Does it account for leap years or the possibility of the 24th falling on a weekend? Where did this derivation come from? It certainly wasn't a matter of equating the units on both sides of the equal sign.

[Durandal]

Just looked at the link. Apparently those aren't two separate equations; the first is divided by the second. So the output units (again, ignoring that you can't add or subtract magnitudes of different units) would be

currency • time²
-------------------,
????

where ???? is whatever idiotic unit comes out of multiplying "motivation level" by "need to take action."

[Admiral Valdemar]

I've come across these "equations" before where some abstract concept has supposedly had a workable formula attached to it to allow people to counter it somehow. It's always psychologists and I never expected any real maths to enter it given the totally arbitrary units and general bullshittery. It's tabloid stuff, like when they say there's a new formula to make yourself a superior human or something.

H x G/S + [C-F] = Superior Human.

Where H is Humanity, G is Greatness, S is Salary, C is Chocolate and F is Fat.

[Medic]

This article is poppycock. I'm always upbeat
Well, this's funny though because my NCOIC really didn't wake up on the right side of bed this morning... fucking great leader she is. And I had trouble sleeping too. Coincidence.
Nay, null and void, other better things happened later.

[Nieztchean Uber-Amoeba]

Well, I'm sure as hell depressed today, so I guess they're on to something.

[Marksist]

H x G/S + [C-F] = Superior Human.

Where H is Humanity, G is Greatness, S is Salary, C is Chocolate and F is Fat.

That's fucking hilarious, do you mind if I put that one in my sig?

[Tinkerbell]

I think they have something there with the concept, but it's not a huge secret that people as a whole seem to become rather lethargic when winter is in full swing. Though I think the "math" attatched to it is bullshit.

[SirNitram]

You know, how hard is it to simply say 'You know, not getting exposed to light causes a good chunk of the population to get depressed. Today is the day of the year most likely to have very, very little light exposure. So there's a good chance people will be depressed as hell.'? Seriously. Nope, they had to bullshit an equation together to try and look smrt.

[Durandal]

You know, how hard is it to simply say 'You know, not getting exposed to light causes a good chunk of the population to get depressed. Today is the day of the year most likely to have very, very little light exposure. So there's a good chance people will be depressed as hell.'? Seriously. Nope, they had to bullshit an equation together to try and look smrt.

Calling a behavioral psychologist like this guy a scientist is tantamount to calling a toilet seat a wine glass.

[RedImperator]

I disagree. The day after the Eagles win the NFC Championship is a fine and fantastic day; the best in months and months.