What if Summer Isn’t a Season of Light for You?

There’s a quiet pressure that seeps in when the days stretch longer and the skies grow impossibly blue.
A cultural insistence on joy, on summer activities, energy, and connection.

But what if you're not feeling that way?
What if your internal world is heavy, withdrawn, or unsettled even as the world brightens?

We don’t talk about that enough.
About how summer depression (yes, that’s a real form of seasonal affective disorder, also called summer SAD) can leave people confused and alone in the sun.

More Than a Dip in Mood

It’s easy to wonder... Is this just a phase? Just tiredness? Just life?

But Summer SAD is more than a passing emotional fog. It’s a form of seasonal affective disorder. A recognised type of depression that reappears as the summer season arrives.

While many people experience a little heaviness or irritability during the warmer months, this is something deeper. A recurring pattern. A low that lingers. A struggle to feel like yourself, even when the world is buzzing with light.

If you notice this shift happening year after year - if sleep patterns unravel, if your energy levels drop, if it feels harder to connect - it may be something worth naming, gently and without shame.

Because there’s relief in recognition, and there’s support beyond the guessing.

When the Danish Light Feels Heavy

In Denmark, summer is often spoken of as a gift. The sky stretches wide. The days last forever. The air softens.

But for some, especially those new here, this light can feel relentless. It seeps into sleep, unsettles rhythms, and magnifies a strange kind of ache: the ache of not belonging, not keeping up, not feeling what you think you should.

And though summer-onset depression is less common than winter SAD, it’s no less real. Especially in places like this, where the seasons swing wide, and the expectations around them even wider.

As an expat, I find these contrasts to be stark. While others scatter for summer vacation, you might feel the quiet deepen. Social isolation, unfamiliar customs, or the loss of familiar rituals can leave you untethered, wondering what’s wrong with you, when really, something important is asking to be felt.

Seasonal Depression Doesn’t Always Come With Snow

When most people think of seasonal changes and mood, they picture winter depression. Shorter days, less sunlight, and low energy.

But for some, summertime depression emerges as the seasons change.

This lesser-known type of depression, sometimes referred to as reverse SAD, tends to appear in late spring or early summer, and may include:

• Depressive symptoms such as persistent sadness or irritability

• Difficulty sleeping and disrupted sleep patterns

• Low mood combined with restlessness or agitation

• Physical symptoms like loss of appetite and low energy

• Heightened body image issues during the summer months

• Increased social withdrawal and a sense of isolation

When the Light Feels Too Bright

There are many risk factors at play: circadian rhythm disruptions from longer days, extreme heat, overstimulation, and even shifts in serotonin levels.

Those already living with a mood disorder may find this time of year intensifies symptoms.

Others may simply feel “off,” with no clear explanation.

But any mental health condition deserves care even (and especially) when it doesn’t look like what people expect.

For Expats: The Pause That Unravels You

The summer season can be jarring. Especially for young adults and foreigners in Denmark, the quietness of summer break, the closing of services, and a lack of familiar community can leave you vulnerable.

In a new country, family history, language gaps, and social isolation all add up. And while everyone else appears to be thriving on social media, on summer vacation, you might be wondering why it feels so hard just to get through the day.

This is a common symptom of seasonal variations in mental health, and it is valid.

Coping Strategies for Summer-Onset Depression

Reclaim your rhythm.
Start with the body. Gentle routines that support your sleep-wake cycle, healthy diet, and energy can offer steadiness when everything else feels unpredictable.

Move with compassion.
Even light physical activity, time in nature, or slow stretching can help recalibrate the nervous system. Movement doesn’t have to be intense to be healing.

Minimise overstimulation.
Air-conditioning, quiet spaces, and routines can support those sensitive to high temperatures or summer heat.

Connect safely.
Reach out to a therapist, a friend, or a support group. Even one moment of presence can regulate energy levels.

Explore treatment options.
You may start with Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT) to help manage negative thought patterns and emotional overwhelm, then integrate approaches like ACT, EFT, or Schema Therapy depending on your needs. You could explore somatic tools, lifestyle adjustments, and nervous system regulation strategies to gently restore balance during the warmer months.

Therapy Doesn’t go on Holiday, and Neither do we

At Hue Therapy, we stay open during the warmer months.

Because your daily life doesn’t pause.
Because the need for mental health care, support, steadiness, and grounding doesn’t vanish when the sun comes out.

We offer therapy in English and multiple European languages, in-person and online, so that expats, locals, and anyone experiencing feelings of depression have a place to land.

If you’re feeling emotionally overwhelmed, lacking energy, or simply not yourself, we’re here.

Let Summer be Whatever it is

Whether you’re experiencing symptoms of SAD, low mood, or something harder to name, you don’t have to "soldier on".

Your nervous system, your body, your heart, they don’t operate on a tourist calendar.

They respond to what’s real, to your story.

Hue Therapy remains open through the summer.

We welcome you – gently, steadily, whether your path this season is bright, shaded, or somewhere in between.

Begin your Therapy journey with Hue Therapy

Reach out and book your free 20-minute consultation with Hue Therapy today to start your mental health journey with the support of our experienced professionals.

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