does the sunny weather make you more confident?

[scratch]

Now that the weather is improving I find my mood & confidence picks up a fair bit.

Walking down the street yesterday in the sunshine I felt a lot more positive and relaxed than normal. I almost felt confident I even chatted to my colleagues at work a lot more than normal!

In the winter months I feel my SA is worse with the shorter days and rubbish weather.

Sometimes I wonder if I moved to a sunnier, warmer climate I would find a lot more confidence in myself and maybe even beat SA.

There is a condition called Seasonal Affective Disorder where people suffer a form of depression during certain times of the year. I have social anxiety all year round but it feels less severe during the summer months anyway.

Anyone else feel like this?

[Mo34]

Funnily enough I'm the opposite. Sunny weather makes me somewhat grumpy. I feel less confident walking down the street because I can't 'hide' underneath a coat/jumper/cardi. I also quite like the earlier darker nights again because I feel I can hide! :/

I do like bright blue sky days and days were the temperature is 'nice' - that does definitely lift my mood but I'm not keen on hot days or summer in general.
I loved summer when I was kid though...

[Zardo]

It beats the long dark and lonelier winter nights, but I still feel crappy in the summer. No one to see and nothing to do, when everyone is out having fun and enjoying the weather that makes me feel lower also.

Originally Posted by Mo34

Funnily enough I'm the opposite. Sunny weather makes me somewhat grumpy. I feel less confident walking down the street because I can't 'hide' underneath a coat/jumper/cardi. I also quite like the earlier darker nights again because I feel I can hide! :/

I do like bright blue sky days and days were the temperature is 'nice' - that does definitely lift my mood but I'm not keen on hot days or summer in general.
I loved summer when I was kid though...

I feel more comfortable in pubic wearing a jacket too, but sweating even worse when it's hot is awful. I can wear a t-shirt/polo shirt without issues these days though. But you'll never catch me in a pair of shorts!

[Caribou]

Originally Posted by Mo34

Funnily enough I'm the opposite. Sunny weather makes me somewhat grumpy. I feel less confident walking down the street because I can't 'hide' underneath a coat/jumper/cardi. I also quite like the earlier darker nights again because I feel I can hide! :/

I do like bright blue sky days and days were the temperature is 'nice' - that does definitely lift my mood but I'm not keen on hot days or summer in general.
I loved summer when I was kid though...

Same.

[Hollie]

I'm the same as some others here, I feel a bit exposed if I can't wear a cardi or jacket, and I prefer winter nights because I sleep better and find it more snuggly. But sunshine does make me cheerful if I'm in the right mood for it.

[ArkoN]

not at all! i sweat more and my aniety is worse when im hot! i hate summer!

[Gary1987]

I only like summer when i can sit in my garden reading a book otherwise i hate it. I too like to wear a coat to "hide" and i like it getting dark at 4 PM.

[Belinda]

Originally Posted by Mo34

Funnily enough I'm the opposite. Sunny weather makes me somewhat grumpy. I feel less confident walking down the street because I can't 'hide' underneath a coat/jumper/cardi. I also quite like the earlier darker nights again because I feel I can hide! :/

I do like bright blue sky days and days were the temperature is 'nice' - that does definitely lift my mood but I'm not keen on hot days or summer in general.
I loved summer when I was kid though...

I like sunshine but I can't tolerate any kind of heat. I feel grumpy when it starts getting humid.

[blackgoddess]

Ye the sun defo helps , think alot of folk get SAD in the winter months through to much darkness, I've even considered investing in a lightbox.....

[girlinterrupted]

No it makes me even more tetchy and irritable than usual (fun times!),and having to wear summer clothes that might actually show skin increases my anxiety mightily

(Plus I`m aware of school summer holidays being around the corner so endless screaming children and groups of teens to navigate- gah sod it I really need to get an ice-filled duvet to hide under `til autumn. Someone really needs to invent that)

[clyde33]

I'm the same as Mo34.

I don't really like the heat as i hate feeling sweaty especially at work. I get grumpy and short tempered when i'm too hot. Then of course if i've been sweating, i get paranoid incase i smell bad. One good thing i guess is being able to hide behind sun glasses when walking down the street.

I like nothing better than a dark cold night with the rain and wind howling outside while i'm in bed reading a book and not having to be sociable.

[matrix]

I totally agree scratch
just having the sun on my face seems to have a calming effect

[Mr. Spaceman]

Sunny (but not hot) weather can have an uplifting effect. But warm sunny days seeing people enjoying themselves with friends and families in parks just makes me feel even more excluded than usual.

[Beccaa]

No as people have already said you cant hide under your jumpers or coat and I like the early dark winter nights...when its raining and windy and dark I can convince myself and everybody else that's why I'm not going out because "it's too cold or its raining" really I obviously know its just my SA but it makes me feel less bad about staying at home and not going out when I tell myself that.

[Mr. Nobody]

Originally Posted by Beccaa

No as people have already said you cant hide under your jumpers or coat and I like the early dark winter nights...when its raining and windy and dark I can convince myself and everybody else that's why I'm not going out because "it's too cold or its raining" really I obviously know its just my SA but it makes me feel less bad about staying at home and not going out when I tell myself that.

me too,.

I can recall so many times when,. as dark clouds approached and rain started coming,.. I would feel such a sense of relief come over me, that I was able to justifiably stay at home.

dark nights do provide good cover for coming and going from my house,, makes it easier to evade neighbourly chats,

good weather troubles me, as it just makes me feel I should be doing much much more than I am doing now, but I never know what that 'much more' is,. I just always feel that whatever I'm doing, it just feels like it isn't enough ~ very annoying ~

[Northern Natterer]

Originally Posted by Mo34

I feel less confident walking down the street because I can't 'hide' underneath a coat/jumper/cardi. I also quite like the earlier darker nights again because I feel I can hide! :/

That's interesting as I also feel so much more self conscious walking down the street without a coat - a trait of SA?

[scratch]

I get the hiding behind a coat thing in winter. Even more so if wearing a beanie hat, scarf and gloves. You do feel 'less exposed' and I guess that's what we all prefer.

Despite that, I still feel more miserable and anxious in winter. I don't think the New Years Eve to Valentines Day period is particularly good for me either - my birthday also falls into this period A combination of wishing I was out celebrating those days plus that post-Christmas blues period. Eughhh

[les]

I do like the hotter and sunny weather, you know I haven't been to a beach or seen the sea for 8 years I must make an effort to do at least a day trip this summer.

[dave81uk]

No I hate summer, I suffer random blushing and heat is on of my triggers, I can end up like a tomato.

[Jake-]

The feeling of warmth on the skin is unique and I like the feeling, and i suppose also that I subconsciously feel that sunny should be more positive than when there darker skies with rain/black.

But for over a summer?
having felt pretty down over a summer and winter for me sun doesn't give a boost in confidence for the summer in particular.

[Mo34]

Originally Posted by Northern Natterer

That's interesting as I also feel so much more self conscious walking down the street without a coat - a trait of SA?

Maybe so. I guess as sa'er's tend to have low self esteem and suffer from self consciousness, it's possibly a natural and common safety behaviour for a lot of people with sa.

[Hollie]

Today I was able to test if the sun makes me feel more confident, so to add to my other post, it definitely made me happier to feel sunshine on my skin, and in turn I think it relaxed me a little bit (although it was cold enough to still wear a coat when I set out). Everything felt prettier because of the nice weather so I found myself wanting to be out and doing things. Not sure if the enthusiasm will last when it gets unbearably hot though...

[Damian]

i can speak for the guys, a study by the medical university of graz found that men receive a 69% boost in testosterone when exposed to 1 hour of sunlight also another study by the boston state hospital found that exposing your skin to 15 - 20 minutes of sunlight can raise testosterone levels by 120%. And higher testosterone levels more confidence.

[ladylou]

It improves my mood a bit, not sure about the anxious part I still feel as anxious as ever.

[mossystone]

I'm more of an autumn/winter person in general, but I do get a kick out of bright and sunny days when I'm in the right mood. It's nice to go and find a quiet spot to do a bit of sun bathing once in a while. I don't mind baring a bit of skin either - well I do have a bangin' body.

[purplerose]

Sometimes I feel a little more confident when it's sunny then other times I feel really unconfident !
As the sun brings everyone out you really start to notice couples, little families and people having fun so in a way it makes me feel like I'm missing out which isn't a nice feeling.

Also I find that as it's sunny and the days are longer there feels like more pressure on me to go out and enjoy the weather and in the winter it's kind of acceptable not to go out as it's too wet, cold and windy.

[Amplexor]

I'm not keen because it becomes more apparent that I don't have friends to go out with. After all, summer is all about going to the beach and having BBQ's, but I tend to stay in

[hollowone]

I feel less groggy, more chatty and confident and generally more upbeat.

On the other hand, sunny weather does tend to ampliy feelings of loneliness. When I see people out and about with their large groups of friends, partners, families, that tends to rub it in more so than in winter. That feeling that you 'should' be out there having the time of your life, having a social life etc. hate it to be honest. The worst part of all is that feeling like you're the only one feeling this way. It's quite a relief to see in this thread others expressing similar feelings.

[Unnecessarily Long Username_1]

I always feel naked when I'm not wearing a massive coat. It was really warm today, so I didn't wear a coat.

And now I've been banned from Tesco.

[Mr. Nobody]

I've heard that the reason Tony Robbins has so much confidence is because his car has a sunroof,. - so there's proof right there folks,