Icelanders can get depressed and anxious due to rainy summer, says psychologist
Skúraveður í Austurstræti. Mikið hefur rignt á höfuðborgarsvæðinu það sem af er sumri mbl.is/Ómar Óskarsson
"It can be quite distressing for the soul if people have expectations for the summer that then fail," says psychologist Kristján Helgi Hjartarson speaking to today's edition of Morgunblaðið.
Hjartarson specialises in depression and anxiety disorders. Light and darkness play a role in the mental health of Icelanders. The lack of sunlight during winter can cause depression in some people, known as Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD).
The weather itself is not really a part of SAD but it can be a contributing factor, says Hjartarson.
In Reykjavik and most of South Iceland it has rained almost continuously for two months.
