Fighting Winter

Winter. If you’re anything like me that word just made you shudder. Everything is grey, dead, and miserable. Sure the snow looks nice. Until it starts blowing in your face and eyes with its best friend, -30• wind.

I could prattle on about winter and it’s monstrosities until the little sunlight of the day fades away. And I’d love to, except I’m here for another reason.

There’s something that makes winter suck even more for some of us: seasonal depression. It’s crippling, and even on good days feels like a cruel joke from our kind friend the universe. As if getting out of bed wasn’t hard enough!

Let’s cut to the chase, that’s enough negativity from my end. Here’s a step by step guide of how I get on with my life while struggling with seasonal depression. Feel free to modify this as it suits you!

1. LET YOURSELF SLEEP IN (if you can of course)

If you feel like garbage, give yourself some extra time to self regulate. There’s nothing worse than having to force yourself out of bed. This really holds the potential to ruin your day. If you always feel like this when waking up, consider using a sleep calculator, which I talk about later in this post.

2. Start the day with a shower (even if you don’t need to wash your hair!)

*this can be replaced with morning meditation

I start with a hot shower, and envision the warmth giving me energy to get through the day. I love to close my eyes and envision sunshine seeping into my soul. Then I have a dance party (candy shop is a personal favourite). I end my shower with 3-5 minutes of cold water. Not only is this good for your hair, it can help channel out negativity. I envision what I call hot emotions (stress, anger, fear, sadness etc.), and imagine them dissipating from my body along with the heat of the shower.

*bonus: if you have plants, hang them in the shower with you! If you live in the city, this will make you feel more connected to nature. Also, the humidity’s great for them!

3. EAT BREAKFAST. PLEASE.

Look I get it, this ones hard. I put it at number theee because it takes some time for my stomach to wake up. If I eat as soon as I wake up I’ll end up feeling sick. However, this is no excuse to not eat breakfast, the most important meal of the day!

I’m not a dietitian, but I don’t recommend postponing it any longer than an hour after you’ve woken up. You’ve heard it before, but I’m here to tell you again, you need that energy. You need to break the sleep fast. (Also don’t forget to drink your water! All day!)

4. Do whatever things you don’t want to do

Work, errands, chores etc. Get them done in the morning. You’ll have the entire day to relax afterwards, just get it done!

5. Read/go for a walk/invest in your mental health

You may not see results the following day, but trust me. Invest in your mental health for an hour a day and your life will change.

There’s really so much you can do. Journaling, meditation, counselling work, the list goes on! Just make sure you’re being consistent and intentional and you will see results!

6. Complete outstanding self care.

Check in with yourself. How do you feel? Could you be feeling better? Is there something that could make you feel better? If there is, do it. If there isn’t, that’s a sign that you’re doing everything you can and you can afford to go easier on yourself.

7. Do your nightly routine EARLY

This saves you from having to get out of bed an extra time. Need I say more?

8. Get the sleep you need

I highly suggest using a sleep calculator. You can find them for free on google. You simply input when you would like to wake up and, using sleep cycle timing, it’ll suggest times for you to fall asleep at. It ensures that you aren’t waking up a groggy mess, and it really helps to start your day on the right foot!