Spring energy after winter darkness is the most dangerous time.

For Seasonal Affective Disorder, the highest risk for suicide isn’t during the deepest winter – it’s in early spring when energy returns but mood hasn’t caught up.

Think of it this way: winter SAD makes you lethargic, oversleep, and feel heavy. That lack of physical energy actually acts as a buffer against acting on suicidal thoughts. You’re miserable but too exhausted to plan or execute anything. Then spring hits. The sun comes back, your body starts waking up, you get more energy – but the depression hasn’t lifted yet. Now you have motivation and physical capacity to follow through on dark ideas that have been simmering for months. That’s the lethal window.

For immediate intervention, watch for these signs specific to SAD:

• A sudden shift from deep winter lethargy to apparent “improvement” – this is often the calm after deciding. The person might seem better, but actually they’ve made a plan and feel relief.

• Expressing hopelessness about the seasonal pattern: “This happens every year, I can’t keep doing this.”

• Talking about feeling trapped in a cycle that never ends.

• Giving away belongings or saying goodbye, especially as the days get longer.