My kids have been driving me nuts lately. Is that a horrible thing for a Mommy to say? Aren’t they always supposed to be the apples of my eye and can do no wrong? Well, this Mommy is shrieking a big “Hell no!” across all of our virtual barriers. My kids have been completely misbehaving and challenging everything I say and do over the last couple of weeks.
My husband was a child therapist for 12 years at the Psychological Trauma Center out of Cedars Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles. He swears by the notion of “Spring Fever” and completely attributes my children’s recent smart aleck behaviors to it. So, it leaves me to wonder if Spring fever is really fact or fiction.
I’ve done a bunch of reading on the subject this morning as I’ve been thinking about this topic, and there is surprisingly a ton of information written about it on the internet. First, Wikipedia defines Spring fever with the following:
Spring fever is a term applied to several sets of physical and psychological symptoms associated with the arrival of spring. In general it refers to an increase in energy, vitality and particularly sexual appetite, often particularly strong in those suffering from seasonal affective disorder (SAD) and thus experiencing lows during the winter months. It is this sense that inspires the use of the term as a title for several works of literature and entertainment. In some uses however it refers to the opposite, an unexpected loss of energy with the onset of spring.
One article from the Los Angeles Times, “Why Spring Fever Makes Us Feverish,” actually discusses that Spring fever is scientific. The article talks about levels of melatonin and serotonin in the body during Winter and Spring. Here’s what it says:
In winter, the body secretes high levels of melatonin, a hormone that governs sleep-wake cycles. Come spring, the increasing amount of daylight is registered by light-sensitive tissue in the eye, which signals the brain to stop secreting so much melatonin. As the hormone’s levels drop off, greater wakefulness results.
On the other hand, levels of another chemical, serotonin, rise in spring. This mood-elevating neurotransmitter may be at the root of the giddiness, energy boost and enthusiasm that characterize spring fever.
To read the entire article, click this link: http://articles.latimes.com/2008/mar/31/health/he-esoterica31
So….here’s hoping it’s just melatonin and serotonin bringing about my children’s new attitudes. Finger’s crossed and prayers are being thought! That is why my song of the day is Patti Labelle’s hit from the 80′s “New Attitude.” I prefer the old attitudes and will wish for their return while I listen. Click HERE if you’d like to listen to this song, too. Summer can’t come soon enough!
