Is SAD a real diagnosis?
It's like when a doctor says, "You have idiopathic XYZ." Many doctors just can't bring themselves to admit they have no clue. [I am not saying you are like that, but plenty are.]
And the fact is, some of them say it's idiopathic, because they won't do the research or aren't creative enough. Because I've see doctors who do the research, and think about it.
Sudden death has long been a diagnosis. when someone dies suddenly at home it can be very difficult to pinpoint a cause Most are assumed to be cardiac but you usually don’t know for sure. The clinical importance is those who have a relative with sudden death are at higher risk of sudden death themselves.
Sometimes the cause is figured out in retrospect when another family member is diagnosed with a heritable condition. I have 2 friends with vascular ehlers danlos which predisposes to fatal vascular ruptures at a young age. Both had one or more relatives with sudden death syndrome My friends diagnosis has shed light on their relatives deaths.