The supply shortage is affecting Indiana in several ways. If you’re looking to build a house, it could take longer and cost more, says Gerry Dick, with Inside Indiana Business.

“Builders can’t find product, can’t find roofing shingles and doorknobs,” he said. “I saw one report that said it’s taking four to six months to get garage doors in and the price of garage doors had doubled.”

Dick told WIBC’s Tony Katz that builders can’t guarantee a final price on a home sometimes because of supply chain uncertainties.

“The problem is not gonna go away any time soon. It’s gonna last well into next year,” he said.

He said one factor contributing to supply chain issues is a shortage of truck drivers, which could be eased by some of the age restrictions being lifted.

“A number of schools here in Indiana have been trying to address that,” he said. “It’s lessening some of the restrictions in terms of age, how old you have to be to drive a truck, some of the training issues related to that, as well, trying to get more people into the truck driving industry, behind the wheel of some of these rigs to get product from point A to point B.”

Dick added that in addition to the supply chain, another difficulty in becoming a home owner is that mortgage rates are expected to go up after the first of the year. But, that may actually ease some of the competition by making home ownership slightly less attractive, with future mortgage rates at around four percent.

As the holidays inch closer and closer, there are people who aren’t incredibly excited by the idea of snowfall and Christmas presents. For some people, this time of year is battle against seasonal depression.

Dr. Susan Conroy, Assistant Psychiatry Professor at the Indiana University School of Medicine says seasonal depression is not a rarity. It’s a common problem for people of all backgrounds.

“The first thing is, it’s really common,” Dr. Conroy explains, “up to 3-percent of people have a clinically diagnosable version of seasonal depression. But a lot more people than that suffer from various degrees of severity for depression, especially in the winter time.”

Dr. Conroy says the warning signs are familiar: low energy, loss or gain in appetite, sleeping a lot more, trouble concentrating, and even thoughts of suicide. She says the trigger for seasonal depression is a bit unusual.

Dr. Conroy explains, “it’s the decreased amount of day light that happens this time of year, and we know the serotonin and melatonin systems in the brain are both involved, highly related to sleep/wake schedules and alertness.”

She says if you or someone you know are beginning to see the symptoms, it’s best to reach out to family, friends, doctors, and even the National Suicide Prevention Hotline.

Some doctors may even recommend something called light therapy, where special light bulbs are used throughout your home, which help trick the brain out of the seasonal depression cycle.

Dr. Conroy says when this time of year comes around, it’s best to stay on a strict sleep schedule, making sure to stay awake and alert all day, and sleeping all night.