Ohio Counseling Conversations
Ohio Counseling Conversations
Let's Unpack That #12: Springing Forward Doesn't Mean Falling Apart
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Sunshine can feel like a promise: more energy, better mood, fewer heavy days. But we’ve learned the hard way that seasonal change, especially the spring shift into warmer weather, can also bring real mental health risks and clinical surprises. Victoria Frazier sits down with Jared Sparks, clinical counselor and supervisor at Cleveland Sex and Intimacy Counseling, to talk about what actually happens when the temperature rises and why “feeling better” isn’t always the same thing as being stable.
We dig into research showing that even small increases in average monthly temperature can correlate with higher suicide rates, then connect that to what we see in practice: irritability, impulsivity, sleep loss, and the ways longer daylight can disrupt circadian rhythm. We also spend time on bipolar disorder and why light sensitivity and shifting sleep cycles can be a major factor during daylight saving time and seasonal transitions.
From there, we get practical. You’ll hear the sleep hygiene tips we lean on with clients (consistent sleep and wake times, keeping the bed for sleep and intimacy only), how shift work complicates everything, and why tools like blackout curtains can be surprisingly powerful. We also talk medication considerations, including heat intolerance, dehydration, and sun sensitivity, plus how we can help clients ask better questions of their prescribers without stepping outside our scope.
If you’re a counselor, therapist, or a client wondering why spring feels harder than it “should,” hit play. Subscribe, share this with a colleague, and leave a review so more people can find it. What changes first for you when the weather warms up?
Welcome And Meet Jared
SPEAKER_00Welcome to Let's Unpack That, a short form segment from Ohio Counseling Conversations, where we dig into the topics, tools, and truths that shape our work as counselors. Whether it's a trending issue, a clinical insight, or something we've all been thinking about, we're here to process it together.
SPEAKER_01Welcome back to Let's Unpack That, the podcast where we dig into the stuff that doesn't always make it onto a treatment plan, but absolutely should. My name's Victoria Frazier, and today we have a special guest who I'm gonna let introduce himself.
SPEAKER_02Yes, my name is Jared Sparks. I am a uh clinical counselor at Cleveland Sex and Intimacy Counseling and a clinical supervisor. Um, I've been in the field for about seven years and just love talking about anything counseling related.
SPEAKER_01Oh my gosh, thank you so much. We're so happy to have you, Jared. So today we're talking about something that catches a lot of newer clinicians and clients off guard, which is what happens to mental health when weather starts to warm up. I think a lot of us assume that, you know, spring brings a lot of relief with it. There's more sunshine, and a lot of times we have more energy or better moods. And for some people, that's really true. But for a lot of clients, and honestly, sometimes for counselors, the seasonal shift can actually bring a lot of unexpected challenges. Some of the things that come to mind are suicidality, mania symptoms, medication complications. And sometimes there's an uptick in no-shows that we can kind of be fearful of as clinicians
Why Spring Can Raise Risk
SPEAKER_01around this time of year. So before we swap out our winter coats for lighter cardigans, let's unpack what comes to mind when you think about weather changes with your clients?
SPEAKER_02Yeah. So I talk about weather a lot with my clients. I think that it's something like you said, that we don't think about until it's here. And in Ohio, it's the weather seasonal changes are here sometimes all in one day. Um, but we it it really does create a lot of challenges for our clients.
SPEAKER_01Yeah, I think one of the things that can be a little challenging is that uh Ohio weather is so unpredictable.
SPEAKER_02Yes.
SPEAKER_01Yes. It was like snowing and then it was 70 degrees a couple weeks ago. But I I was reading some research just kind of in prepping for this episode idea, which is actually one we've had since the beginning of starting to these shorter form episodes. And I was reading some research that even less than a two-degree increase in the average monthly temperature is associated with rising rates of suicide. It's 1.5%, so it's you know, it's not huge, which thank goodness. But we see that in like regions where it's hotter and regions where it's traditionally cooler. And that's something I talk a lot about my clients with because I don't know about you, but I don't even like being warm. But when the weather is warmer, I have so much more energy.
SPEAKER_02I do I do too, and it's it's funny that you say that because I do not I don't I don't like the heat. I'm not a I'm not a summer, summer kind of guy. I I also don't love the winter, but
Temperature Changes And Suicide Data
SPEAKER_02I would take a blizzard over 90 degree weather any day. So I do end up being a little crankier when I'm hot, but I also find that my energy levels are a little bit more elevated when the sun's out and when I get to go outside and not have to put on my winter coat. So I can definitely see how the the change in weather can be very conflictual for folks because I mean I experienced that myself.
SPEAKER_01Yeah, I think there are some diagnoses where obviously it's a little more prevalent. I mean, depression and seasonal affective disorder come to mind. But something that people might be surprised about is people who experience bipolar disorder. One or two. The so something that happens is like their circadian rhythm can be affected because of in a like a lot of artificial light use, like especially our phones, which I love my phone. It's my best friend in all the world, but like my greatest enemy. Absolutely with the the sunlight changing, and then with our phones also being a factor,
Bipolar Light Sensitivity And Sleep
SPEAKER_01it makes it harder to get good rest. And then also there have been some studies that people with bipolar are more sensitive to light in circadium rhythm shifts.
SPEAKER_02Interesting. Yeah, no, I bipolar disorder is one of the ones when I was when I was planning for the for like what we were like what I was going to say on this episode, I thought that like bipolar was actually one that came to my mind very quickly, not necessarily because of the circuit and rhythms. I didn't have as much knowledge about that, but I thought more about like the sleep cycles and the sleep hygiene and the lack of sleep that can come from more manic episodes or hypomanic episodes and the higher impulsivity that can come from manic episodes and hypomanic episodes. And I think that that's very that's very prominent with the weather changes.
SPEAKER_01Oh yeah, totally. Especially if we're thinking about, you know, if we not only is the weather changing, but we have daylight savings time, right? And so then it's more sun, which means less signals naturally for your body to go to sleep, but also just like I don't know if it's even when I was like seven and my mom would tell me to go to bed, I'd be like, no girl, the sun is out. Like that's so bright. Go to bed, the sun's out. And so there's even less like natural motivation to get good, like long sleep. I sleep less in the summer than I do in the winter.
SPEAKER_02Absolutely. I always think of when I think of daylight savings time, I always think of that. Have you seen that meme that it like the all the people in the mean girls movie? Every time the daylight savings happens, it's like raise your hand if you've been personally victimized by daylight savings time and like everyone's raising their hand. Like, that's what I think of because like it it does affect our entire person and our sleep and what we what we are able to accomplish before the sun goes down when we have shorter days and what we what more we can accomplish when we have more daylight, and then that cuts into our sleep time. So I think that's a huge factor.
SPEAKER_01Oh, totally. Are there any like sleep hygiene tips that you give to clients when the weather changes are just kind of in general?
SPEAKER_02Oh my gosh. Yes, I love talking about sleep hygiene with my clients uh to the point that I probably annoyed them because it's so important. And I know it's like the like it can be the health class kind of vibe too, where you're like, don't eat the spicy foods before bed, stay off your phone, blue light, right? But like I talk a lot with my clients about the importance of consistency and routine. Um I'll talk a
Sleep Hygiene That Actually Helps
SPEAKER_02lot about how we need consistent sleep and wake times, even during daylight savings transitions. So I would say like having the consistent time that you go to bed and the consistent time that you wake up can really help your brain understand what you're what you're supposed to do at different times of the day and not be so confused when your head hits that pillow. And then I'll also talk about how your bed should be for sleep and intimacy only with my water. So if you're reading in bed, if you're playing video games in bed or scrolling on TikTok in bed, it's really gonna confuse your brain on what what it's supposed to be doing when you are actually trying to go to sleep. And it'll be like, oh, is Jared trying to go to sleep or is he playing Fortnite? Like, what's happening? And don't know. Um, for the record, I don't play Fortnite, but I guess that's a very common one that I talk about with my clients.
unknownThat's a book.
SPEAKER_01For the record, I also play Fortnite. I did it once and it was so confusing. It is one of the things I talk a lot about sleep hygiene with my clients too, which are as frequent listeners will know, are mostly kids. But I have a little subsection of my caseload that's a lot of mental or physical health professionals, like doctors and nurses, and specifically people who work in the ER somehow. Um, and one of the things I always think about when I'm talking about sleep hygiene is like shift workers. So if people work nights, circadian rhythm can be hard, or if they just have an inconsistent schedule, right? If you're getting up at three in the afternoon to go to work until seven in the morning, that's really challenging. And I also think my other special talent is making everything about capitalism, right? And humans need to sleep more than what our current work schedule and expectations of just our larger societal body expect. And so I think it's also important to talk with clients about like, you know, how the impacts of the capitalism and patriarchy on our sleep, which can seem at first glance really disconnected, but come to mind a lot for me when I'm talking specifically with those clients, but most clients in general, about sleep and why it's important. So one thing that I always recommend a lot to clients is blackout curtains. Um, if you're sensitive to light, and then something else to talk like with your doctor with, or not healthcare providers, which I always feel like I need a flashing neon sign over me that I'm not a doctor. But taking like maybe a vitamin D supplement or melatonin at night and talking to your doctors about what's available with in those areas kind of come to mind for me too.
unknownAbsolutely.
SPEAKER_01A proud vitamin D enthusiast because my office doesn't have any windows in it. And so I'm always vitamin D clean. Yeah, I think something else that kind of comes to mind is like speaking of like doctors and and medication, is that some like antidepressants and antipsychotics can make it harder for you to regulate body temperature. And that's not only in the summer. I have plenty of clients who are sweltering in the in the dead of winter, but it definitely gets harder when the outside temperature rises.
SPEAKER_02For sure. And I mean, like I was saying earlier, like I don't I personally don't like being hot. My partner loves the heat. So we we're always, you know, challenging each other on what the what the thervicet's gonna be set on. And so as someone that does not like to be
Meds Heat Tolerance And Dehydration
SPEAKER_02hot or sweaty or uncomfortable in that way, like if I was also on a medication that elevated that temperature even more, regardless of the time of the year, that the weather change is really gonna shift how I how I navigate my day. And it might really impact my mental health.
SPEAKER_01Oh, yeah. I remember I had a really wonderful sociology professor when I was an undergrad. And she was when we were doing our research chapter, she loved doing the statistic of like, okay, when it gets hot outside or when ice cream sales rise, homicide rates go up too. And it's right, isn't that crazy? But it's because it gets warmer, right? And just people are buying more ice cream and people are more temperamental, they have more time on their hands, and and homicide rates rise. It also is the same with drownings, actually, where drownings rise at this in correlation with ice cream sales.
SPEAKER_02Interesting.
SPEAKER_01Yeah, she uses that example to teach about like confounding variables, right? But I just think about that in general of like, oh, it's it's hot out, people are gonna gonna be feisty today. Um I love that example. But and then if we think about like how like certain antidepressant drugs work, they actually mess with our hypothalamus, which is the gland in our brain that controls our internal temperature and also our ability to sweat. And if it's hot outside, we can burn too much energy. And if we stop sweating, we end up dehydrated, right? Which all affects like the whole person.
SPEAKER_02Right. And that's that's actually I was actually just about to mention dehydration because that's like I don't know about you, but anytime I've ever felt dehydrated in any way because I don't drink enough water, right? I think that's a that's a common problem that a lot of folks are having. Like if I ever like it affects my entire person. Like I feel sick physically, I feel like I'm not cognitively there. And there's there's just it's just really hard to pull back from that sometimes.
SPEAKER_01Oh yeah. I'm really heat intolerant, like to the point where my doctor and I had to talk about it when I was in high school, not to brag, but I did play the flute and marching band. And every every time for the Memorial Day parade, it would be so hot and I would drink so much water and it wouldn't matter. And by the time we got to the end of the parade, I always felt really lightheaded and kind of sick. And not only was that obviously challenging in those moments, but before the parade, like in the week before it, I would be nervous and anxious and I would be grumpy. And I'm not naturally the most grumpy person in the world. So it was really obvious for people when I would show up and be like kind of bratty, honestly. And so I think that that's also something to keep in mind with our clients is like we should be having these conversations ideally before the weather change happens, just to hopefully get some like awareness and power and control over the situation and start kind of you know planning some options that we have.
SPEAKER_02Because how many of our clients may like right now, for example, be anticipating the heat if they don't like it? Like, how many of our clients are already dreading the next few months of sweating and mood dysregulation and exhaustion and sleep cycles being affected? And then fast forward to the fall, how many of our other clients are already anticipating shorter days and more darkness and dreariness and seasonal challenges like that?
SPEAKER_01Oh, totally. I my family jokes that I have like inverse seasonal effective disorder, though like I get sad in the summer. I like I feel like a absolutely mind. Yeah, I just I would so I love the only thing I like about summer is being at the pool. And even then it's really hot at the pool.
SPEAKER_02Right. Even then, I'm like, where's the shade in my book? Like, I just he I I I don't want the sun on me. Uh yeah, no, I my family has said the same thing about me. My family and friends all talk about how I'm thriving in the fall in the winter, and then in the summer I'm like, I'm sweaty and gross, leave me alone.
SPEAKER_01Yeah, you know what would be such a good follow-up episode to this is like how to make winter feel welcoming. Maybe we could do that later because I also love the winter. I feel like I become like the full version of me when it gets below 50 degrees outside.
SPEAKER_02Yeah. I always say my sweet spot, I think, is like 50 to 75. Um like that's where I'm the most comfy. Because, like, like I said, I don't necessarily want a blizzard, but I definitely don't want to be melting either. So like I'll take the blizzard any day over speltering heat.
SPEAKER_01I think something else about cold that that feels a little more manageable in my mind is that I can put on as many blankets and like a heated throw and a coat, and I can light a fire in my fireplace, and like I can get warmer, but there's only so much temperature regulation we can do in the in the summer.
SPEAKER_02There's only so many clothes you can take off before it's not socially accessible anymore.
SPEAKER_01Yeah, then you have to go home. And it's like absolutely, exactly. One of the other things I think about, which uh always it like really blew my mind because for people who can't don't see our clips online, I'm the palest person to ever live. But certain, so I just get sunburned all the time. But certain antidepressants, specifically tricyclic ones, are thought to maybe have some effect on like UV protection and we are more easily sunburned. I know, right? And so that's something else. I it's not like it's not like an overwhelming body of evidence, but there have been there has been some research that says, you know, if you're taking a medication that that falls in that category to just be more conscious, SSRIs also have an effect on our ability to respond to the sun, which is a reason I'm very much team moon.
SPEAKER_02But I did not know that. Like these are things that I
UV Sensitivity And Better Psychoeducation
SPEAKER_02think should be talked about more because our clients might just be taking these antidepressants depressants or these SR SSRIs, and they're thinking, wow, this is really helping my depression, this is really helping my anxiety. But like, what else should I be aware of? Do I need more sunscreen? Do I need to focus on my sleep schedule a little bit more heavily during these months? Like, these aren't things that we're thinking about.
SPEAKER_01No, I think that one of the things I love doing is I I'm a big psychoeduc, and I love talking a lot about science. And so if you come into my office, you're gonna learn about how to do the handbrain model. And like we're gonna we're gonna talk about a lot of this stuff that I didn't know until I was in my master's program or even like learning beyond that, right? And I think that education about prescription medication in just our larger society is really lacking.
SPEAKER_02Well, and I think I don't know, I don't know where you did your master's program, but I know that our program we had like a little bit of education on like a like psychopharmacology, um, enough that we knew what each thing did and like what to be aware of, but we didn't have a big push on learning how to talk about it with our clients. So I feel like I didn't leave grad school with as many, like as many skills in that area to be able to talk about these things with my clients because the I think the push was that we weren't, we're not the doctors, right? We're not the nurse practitioners. So like you don't you that's not your realm, don't go over there. And I didn't realize until I got into the field how much we actually do talk about that with our clients and how much it's important for us to at least have the knowledge about UV protection, for example, and like how that can affect our clients so that we can support them in their journey.
SPEAKER_01Yeah. I one of the things that I talk about with my clients a lot when we are talking about their medication is like, I'm not your doctor, I'm not a prescriber, and so I can't tell you what you should or shouldn't take. And we need to listen to the input of your health, your like physical health care providers. But at the same time, our clients are so comfortable with us, they see us for longer periods. Like when you go to your psychiatrist or your family doctor, you're not there for a long time, especially past your initial visit. And so there's not always speaking of capitalism, there is a lot of pressure for doctors to see a lot of patients, right? And so they're they're pushing people through their offices in response to a larger system. I'm not trying to villainize physical healthcare providers, but that there is time in our office to do that. And so, you know, when we don't know, I love looking things up with clients. Like I love talking about this stuff, but I don't know everything. And I I love being like, well, let's both look it up and see what we can find. And I think that's also not to get off topic, an opportunity for education about like credible sources and how to check where we're learning from, right? And so that's especially with my kids and teens, that's a big like thing that I love doing when we're learning about this stuff.
SPEAKER_02Yeah, and I think you you you basically took my spiel that I give and said it verbatim, because I'll say I'm not a medical provider, I'm not a doctor. But let's have a conversation about how you can talk to your doctor. Like that's what we can do. Like, what questions do you have? But let's formulate that into a way to get your needs met so that you can talk to the people that can provide these services for you.
SPEAKER_01Oh, absolutely. I'm I'm I live a luxurious life of private practice, and so I have a little more wiggle room. But sometimes I'll I'll call the providers with my clients and we'll have a conversation. Um the three of us, if the if we can get a doctor or a nurse or you know, whoever's available on the phone, and and it helps, you know, it helps our clients feel like they have you know support, and but it also helps us. Help them advocate for themselves in SAFA.
SPEAKER_02Absolutely.
SPEAKER_01One thing about me, I'm getting my phone out in Sassu. I love to make a Google.
SPEAKER_02All the time. All the time. Like I get my phone out to Google stuff with our with my clients. I get our phone out to make phone calls. And I I don't need this is also kind of getting off topic a little bit, but I don't know about you, but I'm uh show me the texts. Oh me the pictures kind of person. So like my clients don't need to get like, yeah. Like we're all getting our phones out.
SPEAKER_01A lot of my clients know that it's like the best part of my day when they say, Do you want to see? or like, Do you want to read it? I've I've never a happier.
SPEAKER_02I will never say no.
SPEAKER_01Someone hands me their phone, and they're like, just read it, just read it. Um I had a client make me a PowerPoint once, and that was I've really a PowerPoint.
SPEAKER_02I loved it. It's so helpful. Anyway, yes.
SPEAKER_01The last kind of thing that came to mind when I was when I was prepping for this episode was thinking about like how our clients showing up in the office changes with the weather.
SPEAKER_02Yeah, I that I have this conversation, I think, every time the weather starts to get warmer with at least a handful of clients. Because we as clinicians do see a huge increase in cancellations or no-shows because the weather's getting warmer, so we're cured, right? Like we we have more energy, we feel better, so we must not need therapy anymore. So, like, if you can't read my sarcasm, it's not true. Um, and so I
Warm Weather No Shows And Momentum
SPEAKER_02I will talk a lot to my clients about don't let that win because we're still doing really good work in here that you deserve to be present for. And if you're if you're taking this boost in energy as a signifier that you need to stop coming to counseling, that's probably not true yet. Like, we haven't met all those goals. Like, if anything, we need to be here even more because we have the energy to follow through with the skills that we're learning and the things that we're doing and the things that we're learning.
SPEAKER_01Absolutely. I think that that conversation is so important. And I when I talk to newer counselors about that, sometimes they can be worried about being prestigious pushy, right? And absolutely. And I think that it's it's important to to the thing I always say to them is like, it's important that we give our clients tools and understanding, and then they're going to use their autonomy to decide if they want to show up with us.
SPEAKER_02Absolutely. Yeah. And I I spent kind of a side note on this, I spent or I have spent a pretty large portion of my career thus far working with teenagers and adolescents. And so I will see a lot around this time of year that it's my teenagers that are indefinitely not wanting to come to counseling around this time. I mean, some of them don't want to be in counseling to begin with. Um, but extra around this time, even more so around this time because school then day. Like the weather, the weather getting warmer doesn't just signify a boost in energy for them. It signifies freedom for the summer. It signifies more fun activities, not sitting in a classroom all day. So they're really thinking that their depression, their anxiety, their mood is improved. And it is being able to give them the information to know, hey, we're still working on these really awesome goals. And like you have the like you said, you have the autonomy to decide. Like, am I gonna well, for my teenagers, am I gonna tell mom and dad that I'm not coming to counseling today? Or for my adults, I'm just not going to counseling today. Or are we gonna decide to take an hour of your time to show up and keep working on the cool things that we're doing and then go back out into the world and have fun for your summer?
SPEAKER_01Yeah. I think also for parents, right? We have uh kids that are at home now in the summer, and that can be a barrier to to treatment. And even for older adults, they have grandkids maybe to take care of, right? Or just like larger family dynamics. And so I think these conversations are so important, even though on the surface it's like very stereotypical small talk, right? To talk about the weather.
SPEAKER_02Absolutely, and it feels like stereotypical small talk, but like in these contexts, it's it it can become a deeper conversation, and it's it's so important.
SPEAKER_01I think that's such a wonderful bow to kind of put on this episode. Like bringing forward is important, but but it also doesn't mean that we have to fall apart, right? Our clients or us as clinicians. I think this episode we gave a lot of knowledge, and hopefully we have some new language and practical tools to kind of start navigating time change and weather change. And as always, I'm so glad our larger listenership is here doing this work. And Jared, thank you for your work.
SPEAKER_02Thank you for having me.
SPEAKER_01Oh my gosh, we'd thank you for being here, and we'd love to have you back.
SPEAKER_02Thanks.
SPEAKER_01This was so fun. For any of our listeners, please feel free to reach out on social or
Wrap Up And Listener Check In
SPEAKER_01text us in the description on our show notes. We'd love to hear how you're handling the spring shift in your own practice. And until next time, let's keep unpacking.
SPEAKER_00Thanks for joining us for Let's Unpack That, brought to you by Ohio Counseling Conversations and the Ohio Counseling Association. If it sparks something for you, share it with a colleague or drop us a line. We'd love to keep the conversation going. Thanks for listening. And until next time, we encourage you to keep unpacking the big stuff one conversation at a time. The views, opinions, and references shared by hosts or guests are their own and do not necessarily reflect those of the Ohio Counseling Association. Any appearance by a guest does not imply an endorsement of them, their views, or any organizations they may represent. Content discussed should not be interpreted as official positions, recommendations, or endorsements by OCA or its leadership.