"35 degrees Celsius" is the temperature displayed on the smart fan, indicating the sweltering heat even though it is the rainy season. To make matters worse, the air conditioner, which helps alleviate the heat, has broken down. "So hot" has become an automatic phrase spoken out loud, even with no one to hear it. The hot wind blowing in from the window is accompanied by an immense amount of invisible dust.
Rashes starting to appear on my skin and streams of sweat signal an increasing irritation. Just a few days later, it begins to rain again, alternating with the hot weather in the afternoon, making it difficult for us to adapt to the unpredictable weather. Although climate change, commonly referred to as ‘global warming,’ is often discussed to the point of indifference, the weather is something humans cannot control; we can only cope with it. The weather that sustains life on Earth not only affects the body but also significantly impacts human mental states. For instance, exposure to sunlight stimulates serotonin and dopamine, which are happiness-inducing chemicals that make us feel energized and reduce stress. However, currently, the weather has been increasingly hot with unusually erratic rainfall over the past few years, causing many people to face fluctuating emotions as well, along with a rise in allergy symptoms. According to statistics from the Allergy and Immunology Association of Thailand, in 2016, the number of allergy patients in Thailand increased by 3 to 4 times compared to ten years ago, with one of the allergic reactions being weather allergies. Additionally, there are various weather-related illnesses such as heat strokes, diarrhea, colds, and other infections. Many may not notice how much the weather can disturb our minds and bodies, but if we look deeper into this issue, we may better understand the relationship between weather, our bodies, and our minds.
Feeling bad may not just be due to a lack of sugar.
Although there is a common saying on social media humorously suggesting that people feel bad due to low sugar levels, the main cause that impacts our feelings each day, often without us realizing it, is the ‘weather’ on that particular day, which affects our mood from the moment we wake up.
For example, waking up to extremely hot weather, commuting to school or work in pouring rain, or hanging laundry that doesn’t dry because the sunlight doesn’t reach it. In our daily lives, we often cannot avoid being affected by these unpredictable weather conditions.
Even being in a shaded area with air conditioning or air purifiers can only temporarily alleviate these impacts. However, remaining in such limited spaces still affects both our physical and mental states. This includes not exercising enough, feeling unrefreshed due to a lack of natural sunlight, or being in areas with low oxygen levels, which can slow down brain function and make us feel sluggish.
In Thailand, where there is both intense sun and heavy rain alternating, we are affected in various ways. For instance, extreme heat prompts the body to produce hormones that make us more stressed and irritable than usual, while during the rainy season, it may lead to depressive states associated with the weather (Seasonal Affective Disorder). Although this condition is linked to winter when there is little sunlight, severe weather fluctuations can also trigger similar symptoms, such as feeling sad, easily fatigued, lacking motivation, and craving carbohydrate-rich foods like ‘sugar’.
Moreover, these fluctuations in weather are a significant barrier that prevents many from engaging in social interactions, such as traveling to meet friends or participate in various activities, whether it’s exercising together, going out, or attending other outdoor festivals.
When many of our daily activities are disrupted by such weather conditions, it creates feelings of dissatisfaction or a sense of helplessness regarding these issues, causing us to accumulate stress unknowingly. When we fail to recognize that the stress we are experiencing stems from these causes, we may not know how to relieve it.