Fight Back Against the Winter Blues

Now that the winter has officially settled in, so will the winter-time blues for a lot of people. It’s understandable: most can’t stand being cold to begin with, now add shorter, cloudy days and you’re guaranteed to have a lot of morose faces. Don’t let yourself become victim to the usual winter weariness this year, though. Here are a couple easy suggestions that can help you turn your winter outlook around.

This was one of my absolute favorite ideas (and it’s basically how I got myself through college slumps without even realizing it: set goals for yourself to help you look forward to the coming spring and sashay your way where, proactively. Rather than sitting around an wallowing in your cold weather blues, grab yourself a bright and cheerful 2014 calendar. Mark off in bright colors the change of the seasons, and then add a bunch of fun warmer weather activities that you’d like to participate in their after. Say for a weekend in May you’d like to head out to Montauk Point to walk the beach, or some weekend in June you’d love to take the family camping. Once you have your calendar full, then it’s time to set a daily goal for yourself to get you there: walking a mile a day, spending 45 minutes a day at the gym, doing laps at work on your lunch break, etc.

Why not give this winter stuff a chance?! One of the only ways to enjoy your winter, rather than dreading it, is by taking up a winter activity that you can look forward to. You never know what you’re going to love until you give it a chance. There’s snow-shoeing, downhill skiing, cross-country skiing, sledding, snowboarding, ice skating, winter hiking, and so much more. Give a couple of activities a really try and see if it doesn’t help you have at least a minor change of heart.

This may sound insane, but it will help simulate sunlight: buy a timer and set up a couple of your lights to turn on a ½ hour before your alarm is set to go off. One of the main causes of the “winter blues” is difficulty waking up in the morning, even after a full nights rest. The lights turning on around you help to simulate artificial sunlight, and help to turn off your morning drowsiness.

Lastly, get in as much sun as possible, and as early as possible! When you’re up and moving in the morning, get those blinds open to let the light in. Better yet, throw your coat on and get out the door for a little before-work activity. The more sunlight you can actually absorb during this short-day season, the better your outlook.