When the days get colder, people’s moods starts to change. As winter starts to come around, people notice that they wake up later because of the cold, and often feel lazier and sadder, which can impact their mood throughout the day.

There is a disorder known as Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD) that triggers people’s emotions to feel more down and lazy due to the cold. Some symptoms include a persistent low mood, a loss of interest in normal everyday activities, and a feeling or irritation. Seasonal Affective Disorder was a term first used in a 1984 paper by Norman Rosenthal and colleagues at the National Institute of Mental Health in Bethesda, Md.

Archie Glazer, a junior from Newton, Mass., says, winter changes his mood for the worse.

“I don’t like the cold because it makes me feel more lazy and unhappy,” he said. Archie says he wakes up 30 minutes later than usual, “around 7:30, to 10:30 on the weekends.”

“I hate winter, it brings my mood down, and makes me feel more upset,” Archie added.

Jayde Dawson-Gordon, an Academic Strategies teacher from Westfield, Mass., is quite the opposite to Archie.

“I have to wake up earlier because of my son, at around 5:45-6:30,” Dawson-Gordon, whose son goes to the Williston Children’s Center, said.

Despite this early wake-up call, Dawson-Gordon said he likes the winter because, “It lets me have more time off, and that makes me happy.” He said he does not feel lazy or moody when he first wakes up in the morning. In fact, he said it “allows me to be more productive, as I am the most functional in the morning, which is why I like to get up early.”

Hieu Duong, a senior from Ho Chi Minh, Vietnam, was very active during the fall. However, as the cold came around, laziness started to kick in.

“During the school week, when the days get colder, I wake up 10-20 minutes later,” Hieu said. “On the weekends, I don’t wake up.”

Since he stays in his room more often in the cold, Hieu, whose favorite season is Spring, said, “I find myself much lazier.”