Twitterpated

The scientific explanation of spring fever

 by Lauren Cusimano
 published on Wednesday, April 2, 2008

STATE PRESS MAGAZINE

STATE PRESS MAGAZINE

For some, the concept of "spring fever" means a boost of energy and a need to clean the house. For others, it means a more frequent tug in the pants.

Poets, songwriters, movies and literature have often approached the idea of spring fever, felt mostly in the form of love or a "spring fling."

Take for instance the poet E. E. Cummings' 1944 rendition of this concept in his work "Sweet Spring," in which Cummings proclaims, "Sweet spring is your time, is my time, is our time. For spring time is love time and viva sweet love."

Of course, Disney's classic "Bambi" might have best given a name to the effect with the word "twitterpated."

Spring fever actually has something to do with Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD), according to Aaron Krasnow, assistant director of Counseling and Consultation at the Tempe campus.

Seasonal Affective Disorder, according to Mayoclinic.com, is a type of depression. This depression is a cyclical, seasonal condition so the symptoms come and go at the same time every year. The depression usually occurs in the winter.

"People experience kind of an unexplained drop in their mood when the nights get longer or it gets colder," Krasnow says.

Molecular biology junior Rachel Schaefer says she feels the effects of spring more so at home in Wyoming than in Arizona. "After the winter, there really are flowers," she says.

Concerning Seasonal Affective Disorder, Schaefer says her mood has yet to alter during her stay in the desert.

"[Spring Fever] hasn't happened to me here, but when I visit Wyoming, it's such a nice day outside, I'd have to go for [Spring Fever]."

Chemical engineering freshman Kent Stephenson also doesn't believe Seasonal Affective Disorder will work much magic in Phoenix.

"I believe that [Spring Fever] actually happens, it's just that in Arizona, it's so much more comfortable in the winter than it is in the summer," Stephenson says. "So when I think about the summer coming in the spring, I think, 'It's going to get hot.'"

One thing he does look forward to: not having to wear long pants. "Shorts are comfy," Stephenson says.

Aerospace engineering freshman Jessica Johnson says in Phoenix, it should be called "Winter Fever."

Krasnow agrees that the Valley is not the best place for SAD. "It is most often seen in places where it gets much colder than Arizona," he says.

Some of the symptoms of winter depression are loss of energy, social withdrawal, oversleeping and hopelessness.

Therefore, "spring fever" is sometimes thought of as the rebound to Seasonal Affective Disorder," Krasnow says.

"When the spring is coming or when people know that the days are going to get longer and the nights are going to get shorter, sometimes there will be a little bit of an increase in agitation," Krasnow says.

He says there is a "desire to kind of get up and get out of the office, or get out of your home or off the couch."

Krasnow says sometimes people embrace this, which is why it is called spring fever.

Symptoms of spring fever, or "reverse SAD," include a persistently elevated mood, increased social activity and hyperactivity.

Krasnow says SAD is only considered the cause of winter blues or the reverse of spring fever if there is no other explanation. SAD can occur amongst people if "they don't have any other form of depression, there's no depression in their family, things like that."

According to Krasnow, the exact cause of Seasonal Affective Disorder is unclear. He says it likely has to do with the rhythms that regulate the body clock, or dopamine, a chemical that regulates mood.

Krasnow says melatonin, a sleep-related hormone, also plays a role. The body's production of melatonin normally shoots up during the extended dark of winter. This only aids the disorder.

Another explanation might be the relief of cabin fever.

"I think it's not so much the fact that it's spring as that it's no longer winter," says Japanese senior Dan Bruner. "In winter, we don't go to school and most of us end up staying in or with family."

Bruner says the return to campus might be the reason behind everyone's anxiousness.

"When we come back, we're more antsy to find someone because it's been a while since we've seen any eligible people," he says.

— lauren.cusimano@asu.edu