Question of the Day, Wednesday, April 5, 2017 THE LATE EDITION

[Mamanyt1953]

SORRY SORRY SORRY...I was building bookcases, and time got away from me!

SO, does anyone want to come put together the next batch?  Nononononononono...that is NOT a question of the day...

Do you feel as if the phase of the moon affects your mood?\\

I am always very restless during the full moon,  I want to be out under it, walking in the night.  I can't remember a time when this wasn't true.

 

[jennifurr]

Believe it or not, I do feel that way sometimes.

My mom noticed that I would become more agitated and anxious during a full moon. I would be more panicky, and be more emotionally unstable. It doesn't last too long, though.

 

[MoochNNoodles]

I don't think so.  

I do remember my Mom and her co-workers commenting their students would be crazy during full moons. Most of the students lived in dorms on campus so they had plenty of time to be observed! 

 

[artiemom]

My mother did tell me that I was born on a full moon; or was it a new moon?? Either way, I remember her saying that she watched the bight full moon on the way to the hospital to have me. 

Needless to say.. Yes, I believe in full moon craziness!! Yup.. personally, to myself; to all the craziness that happens during a full moon,  and to the professional work crazies...

I worked in the medical field my entire life.. Full moons were the worst... 

 

[Winchester]

I was born on a New Moon. I don't think the phases of the moon affect me, but I could be wrong. I shall ask Dear Richard! 

 

[Primula]

Sometimes if I've had a bad day, have been irritable, anxious, etc., I look outside & see a ferociously bright full moon. There is definitely something in it. That's where we get the word "lunatic" from after all.

 

[denice]

I hadn't noticed it with myself but I believe that there is something to it.  A full moon affects tides because of the extra gravitational pull so it makes sense that it would affect at least some people.

 

[micknsnicks2mom]

i don't notice any effect on me during phases of the moon. i do believe that at least a full moon can and does effect some people though. i worked in the hotel industry, working the overnight shift, for many years. every time there was a full moon, we could count on people arriving who were a bit 'loony' in one way or another. and many people tend to 'act out' when staying at a hotel/motel anyway.

 

[margd]

Yes!  For years I developed a fierce migraine the day before the full moon that would last for three days.  I never scheduled anything on the full moon for that reason - I knew that I would be somewhere wishing I could pack my head in ice and completely unable to function.

  In searching for a reason for "the full moon migraine", I discovered that there is no scientific basis for the full moon effect.  Hah!  Just tell try convincing the burning poker shoved through my eye that.  Or the saw taking off the top of my head. Or the brain fog so thick that I need a seeing eye dog to get through it. Or the....never mind.   Thousands of ER nurses and doctors can't all be wrong.

 

[neely]

 
Yes!  For years I developed a fierce migraine the day before the full moon that would last for three days.  I never scheduled anything on the full moon for that reason - I knew that I would be somewhere wishing I could pack my head in ice and completely unable to function.

That's an interesting theory, I never paid attention to the moon when I get a migraine but will do that from now on. 

Whenever our middle school students act up and it seems like the domino effect we always check if it's a full moon.  Of course, middle school students are a unique bunch! 

 

[jcat]

I always have trouble sleeping when the moon is full, but a lot (or most) of that is probably due to having a restless cat in our bed. Our last cat would be active all night when the moon was full; Mogli gets up numerous times. One thing noticeable about cats and full moons at the shelter is that the resident ferals always have a lot more rodent "gifts" for the staff at that time of the month.

 

[Mamanyt1953]

This is something that I observed while working in a state mental hospital...On the full moon, our patients suffering from manic type illnesses went wild.  On the new (dark) moon, we had to watch the depressives like hawks, as they were more likely to self-harm.  Odd,  BUT...our bodies are 98% water, so it makes a certain amount of sense that the moon would affect the tides of our inner workings!

 

[margd]

 
This is something that I observed while working in a state mental hospital...On the full moon, our patients suffering from manic type illnesses went wild.  On the new (dark) moon, we had to watch the depressives like hawks, as they were more likely to self-harm.  Odd,  BUT...our bodies are 98% water, so it makes a certain amount of sense that the moon would affect the tides of our inner workings!

I always suspected that my full moon migraine had something to do with the moon's gravitational pull, even though theoretically it shouldn't.  It's been so long since I read an article addressing this that I can't remember its name and can't pull it up.  However, I remember distinctly that the authors claimed that one of the reasons they knew that the full moon's gravitational pull wasn't responsible for all the weird goings on is because the same stuff should happen at the new moon and it didn't.  Neap tides (high tides) happen at the full moon and the new moon - neap tides are when the sun's gravitational pull and that of the moon are combined.   The fact that you did observe mood changes at the new moon is interesting in itself but the fact that people were more manic at the full moon and more depressed at the new moon is absolutely fascinating. 

I didn't find any studies on the full/new moon effect on moods but there is a lot of anecdotal information in mental health forums that confirms that people do suffer emotional instability at both phases, though not necessarily separated by manic and depressive states.  I guess the authors of that study needed to survey a lot more people before arriving at their conclusion.

Interesting stuff!