I firmly believe the people you interact with on a daily basis, your daily schedule and even the very place you live can have a drastic impact on personal mental health. I grew up my whole life in the same little town right outside of Chicago, everyone basically knew everyone and you went to school with the same group of people for all 18 years of life. There was no escaping anyone. The summers were extremely warm and full of leisure, fall brought beautiful color changing trees with a nice breeze but it was crushed fast by the death of everything outside and the bitter cold winter air. Winter was dragged out sometimes all the way through March with slushy grey snow and cloudy skies.

As the years passed by I realized a trend with my mental health failing. It spiked a little into the school year when I was pushed back into the mundane schedule day after day and the weather worsening didn't help. Seasonal Affective Disorder is a type of depression that comes and goes with the seasons, typically starting in the late fall and early winter and goes away during spring and summer according to the National Institute of Mental Health.

On top of the seasonal depression that made me want to crawl in a hole and never come out during the winter, being around the same toxic people my whole life only added to the problem. It all spiked late middle school and early high school when, most people would agree, is one of the greatest times of change for a child.

The constant friend group changing and immature people can really drag someone down. There was no way to escape the predispositions someone had made of you all the way back in elementary school, it followed you until graduation. It was an ongoing battle through high school, right up until senior year when I finally realized that I could decide to go anywhere in the world with the aide of college. It allowed me to finally leave the confining borders of Munster, Indiana and branch out all the way to Charleston, South Carolina.

Just within the half a year I've lived here the dynamic of my mood has changed. The mood of this historic city with its southern charm has pushed me to better myself emotionally. Not only has the mostly sunny weather brought my mood to a better place but I was able to surround myself with new people and take on new experiences. Here I am, at the beginning of February and proud to say there were only a few days in the past "winter months" that I had felt my old buddy SAD creeping up on me. I have found my own little forever paradise for the next four years or possibly longer. I sit today writing this within the comfort of three consecutive 70 degree days. It has been proven that the vitamin D provided by the sun can raise dopamine levels which ultimately elevate peoples mood. So here's to moving across the country and finally working on my mental health in a better environment.