I start to hit the tanning beds about this time of year! I know I know, you have to be so careful with skin cancer. But from my readings, skin cancer is only a problem when you BURN, and I don’t burn after only 6 minutes in a tanning bed 😛 I have Seasonal Affective Disorder. And no, that doesn’t mean I just have the blues because of lack of sun, it means I get really depressed and struggle to think clearly.

Tim suggested I get a tan on Friday (poor guy was putting up with my crazies) and I came home so happy and bubbly again! So, yesterday he says to me, “I think you should go get a tan every single day, for at least a month, until you get feeling better.” He’s so funny how matter of fact he is 😀 I guess Friday I was good after the tan, and Saturday was ok, then Sunday was pretty bad.

Often times I don’t even notice when I am getting the crazies like that until Tim mentions something. Usually, I sit there all moody, apologizing to him over and over and wondering out loud why I am feeling that way and it’s not his fault. (he usually apologizes too and says he probably made ‘it’ worse) What a sweetie, eh? That’s usually when it hits me that it’s not normal, and something is off.

So, I was scouring the internet looking for a picture of a tanning bed that didn’t look so BAD, and this one, where the lights are off was the best I could find. Should tell you something. Hmmm.

Let me tell you why I put myself through the possible risks associated with tanning beds. For starters, S.A.D. makes you CRAZY and depressed. I find my energy level drops severely and my husband suffers. When I tan, it’s like someone turned a light on in my brain, and thawed out my bones which began to feel frozen from the inside. It’s the one time of the day when I don’t feel freezing cold and wish I could just live in the bath tub of hot water.And it lasts for at least 24 hours!

So is using a tanning bed worth it? Honestly, right now it is, but in the long run? I don’t know! Thankfully, I don’t live so far North that it’s like this year around, or I really WOULD worry about tanning every single day. What do you think about Tanning beds and tanning in general? do you suffer with SAD?