Abstract. Given the proven effects of weather on the human organism, an attempt to examine its effects on a psychological and emotional level has been made. Emotions affect the bio tone, working ability, and concentration; hence their significance in various domains of economic life such as health care, education, transportation, and tourism.The present pilot study was conducted in Sofia, Bulgaria over a period of eight months, using five psychological methods: Eysenck Personality Questionnaire, State-Trait Anxiety Inventory, Test for Self-assessment of the emotional state, Test for evaluation of moods and Test "Self-confidence-Activity-Mood". The FiodorovChubukov's complex-climatic method was used to characterize meteorological conditions in order to include a maximal number of meteorological elements in the analysis. Sixteen weather types are defined depending on the meteorological elements values according to this method. Abrupt weather changes from one day to another, defined by the same method, were also considered.The results obtained by t-test showed that the different categories of weather led to changes in the emotional status, which indicates a character either positive or negative for the organism. The abrupt weather changes, according to expectations, have negative effects on human emotions -but only when a transition to the cloudy weather or weather type, classified as "unfavorable", has been realized. The relationship between weather and human emotions is rather complicated since it depends on individual characteristics of people. One of these individual psychological characteristics, marked by the dimension "neuroticism", has a strong effect on emotional reactions in different weather conditions. Emotionally stable individuals are more "resistant" to the weather influence on their emotions, while those who are emotionally unstable have a stronger dependence on the impacts of weather.

Aim: The purpose of this study was to reveal the seasonal distribution of emergency department visits of schizophrenic patients in Sofia, Bulgaria. Methods: We collected daily data for visits of patients with schizophrenia, schizotypal and delusional disorders in the emergency center of the regional dispenser for mental disorders in the city of Sofia for the period 1998-2003. The total number of emergency visits was 5723 (mean daily visits: 5.04±2.4). T-test was used to compare the monthly and seasonal distribution of visits. Results: The season with the highest levels of emergency visits was summer, and the lowest levels were observed in winter (P<0.0001). Spring and autumn had intermediate values close to the mean value, and significantly differentiated from winter values. The month with the highest admission rates was September, followed by May and the three summer’s months. The lowest levels were observed in December, October and January, with statistically significant differences observed between the values of all the three months. Differences between July values compared with December and October values were significant, but not with January values. Conclusion: The study showed significant seasonal and monthly differences in emergency schizophrenics’ visits. The data confirm the outcome of similar studies conducted in countries with temperate climate in the Northern Hemisphere. These results could prove useful for psychiatrists, public health specialists, and governmental authorities dealing with team planning and prevention programs in the field of psychiatry.

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