Feeling Happy in Winter + Seasonal Affective Disorder Cure
I love the quote that goes something like, “why spend time deciding if the glass is half empty or half full when there is a pitcher right beside it that you can pour from?” I am not sure where I heard this or who said it, but it has always stuck with me.
Do you feel a bit ick in winter? Distinctively mentally heavier and in a down mood, feel like you’re dragging, tired, and have less energy? Life is just harder to cope with and your soul feels like it has a rock in it, holding it close to the earth? Spring and summer feel like a far away hazy thing you can hardly imagine as if they existed on some distant planet or you read about them in a storybook?
I have always had a deep sense of dread for winter. My mind wanted to squirm out from under the idea of it, and when it surrounded me with it’s cold and dead landscape, I always felt a dark heaviness over me. For a long time, I didn’t know there was actually a name for this, but there is - Seasonal Affective Disorder or SAD. When I learned about it I knew right away I experience it. It’s always worse this time of year, in February, when it’s still a while before spring will come.
This year, however, something is different! I keep saying to myself and to my mom (who experiences this too) “I feel like it hasn’t even been winter!” It’s so weird. It’s the first winter I’ve felt like I could actually focus and have the energy for all the fullness of life! I realized that for me, winter basically meant SAD. I associated winter so closely with feeling bad, that to me, the season meant the heavy, dark, slow way I would feel even more than the weather it held.
This article is all about pouring from the pitcher! Why spend all your time trying to be positive and force yourself through it, or waste time feeling “glass half empty” when there are things you can do to not even have to think about SAD! Here is the lowdown on how I was able to not feel winter or experience seasonal affective disorder this year and have the energy to actually do life the way I wanted to!
First, what is seasonal affective disorder? It is a type of depression that occurs in the wintry months and is closely tied to the shortened amount of light each day.
All of the things I’m going to tell you about is the “pitcher” that will keep your glass full for the rest of winter. If you hate feeling this way, like I did, you’ll be ready for anything that would change it. These things will take a lot of effort, especially when you already aren’t feeling very energetic in the first place, so you have to really want to feel better and be willing to put in the effort! It will be challenging, but it will be worth it and will benefit you in more ways than just your mood! These things will take consistency and creativity to find a way to schedule them into your regular life, but I know you can if you are willing! I know that these things actually do work because I’ve never felt so happy and so good in winter! I know that this is absolutely due to the things I’m about to share with you!
Sun Exposure:
One of the biggest changes that impacted me the most is highly prioritizing sun exposure. It’s crazy how much this affects me! I now take advantage of every sunny day! I see the sunshine as my medicine and my hope for feeling great! It’s a happy pill in the form of light! Getting 15 minutes of sunshine a day is enough to make the difference, but an hour is even better if possible!
To get the benefits, each individual has creatively weave sunshine into their lives often in their own way. Perhaps it is taking a walk on your lunch break, or sitting by a sunny window to work all day. If it’s really challenging, you can try a light box which you can have on your desk - one of the benefits of living in the age of technology! I don’t think anything can quite substitute the sun itself, but it’s definitely worth taking advantage of this technology.
How do I do it? I am fortunate, working from home, it’s not too hard. We have three big beautiful windows in a row, and in winter the sun shines through them making a big grid of light. The windows in our home are the main reason I wanted to buy this place! Every sunny day I bath as much skin as possible in the glorious light! Somedays it’s just for lunch, and other days I set my laptop on the floor with a pillow and work there for as long as I can!
I’m still learning about all the benefits of light, but here are a few of the reasons this works so well! For one, beams of sunshine just make you FEEL amazing. Light just makes your soul shine, simple as that.
The sun causes our bodies to produce vitamin d. It helps you absorb the vitamins and minerals from your food, helps your immune system and your good gut bacteria. There are receptor sites for Vitamin d on every cell in the body! This is why you want to be in the sun every day. The sun converts hormones in your skin, LDL cholesterol, into vitamin D! This is why you want to get as much skin as you can in the sun for 15 minutes or more a day.
The other thing that’s very important about light exposure, especially in the morning, is that it causes your body to produce melatonin naturally. Many people who have SAD can experience poor sleep, but there are solutions! Getting 15 minutes or more of light in the morning will cause your body to naturally produce the melatonin it needs and you’ll sleep amazingly. I see melatonin recommended a lot as a supplement for sleep but taking it consistently can actually be detrimental for your sleep. Your body will stop producing the melatonin you need altogether and you’ll become dependent on the supplement. Give your body the chance to take care of you and get light in the morning instead - it works just the same if it’s cloudy out! Respecting your bodies circadian rhythm by getting to bed before 10 and getting up at a good time will help a lot too!
Candles:
Candles are surprisingly helpful for making you feel really really great in winter. I use them every single day - I think they show up in my Instagrams a lot and that is just because they are always with me! I light them first thing when I wake up if I’ve risen before dawn. They are a very pleasant, cozy way to welcome the day when bright light bulbs are not quite right yet. I sit with them journaling, praying and meditating, checking in with my goals, setting intentions, and reading. When the sun goes down, I feel a deep sense of sadness and longing in my soul - I’m not sure how to describe it. The sharp outlines of frozen trees cut out by desolate headlights of lonely people driving home from long days of work and disappearing into the dark again. It feels my heart with ache and gloom for no good reason. Quickly I shut the curtains and light my candles, and the room fills with light playing on the walls and ceiling, instantly making the room fill light and cozy and filling might heart with cheer! Sometimes I put on some soul soothing music that makes and make tea or start vegetables roasting in the oven so that an aroma floats through the house. All these things make the inside feel like a cheerful, cozy, alive place to be - a safe, happy oasis from the world outside. I also know that before too long, my love will be coming home and this makes me feel very happy too. This all is a very higglig feeling. Which reminds me, higglig is the best way to embrace winter! Maybe I should do a post on it because I think it’s Essential for SAD, and it includes some of the things I’m talking about here!
For candles, I use brass candlesticks. I like how sculptural and elegant they look as opposed to fat squat candles in glass. They bring instant charm. Mine are a collection from our wedding - we curated them from many trips to thrift stores. I’m sure they each have a different story of past lives - what they are I’ll never know!
Fibers:
Here is a strange, strange and very essential inside secret to not experience SAD in winter! It’s an inside secret, because there are only two people I’ve ever heard of that know about it, and they are myself and my mum. It’s nice to know that this makes such a huge difference for my mum who is also impacted by SAD, otherwise, I’d wonder if I was crazy. Ok, so what is it? Only wearing all natural fibers!
I’ve curated a wardrobe now with only all natural fibers. I began this transition last winter and this winter I went for it completely. I got rid of everything that had polyester, acrylic, nylon, etc. Anything made of plastic or highly processed materials. My entire wardrobe is created from cotton, wool, cashmere, silk, linen, and fur. Rayon and viscose seem to do well for me too even though they are a bit more processed of a natural fiber. I am trying to think even how to put into words how big of an impact this has made on the way I’ve felt this year. It’s one of the biggest reasons I keep saying “I feel like it’s not even winter!” Meaning that I don’t feel the depression that I associate with winter. I feel like I am actually still “me” this winter. It’s a really strange thing - I can feel a distinct connection between plastic clothing and the way I feel. To be honest, I actually really love the wabi-sabi “real” feel of my closet now even though it means not buying a majority of what’s offered at low-end retail stores. I haven’t been able to find any studies or scientific explanations to back this up (everything else I’m writing about I know both from experience and because I’ve read and studied them many places). I’m hoping in a few years there will be studies that prove this connection. I can’t wait for that to happen. If anyone has read anything or has ideas on the link between unnatural fibers and how you feel, please let me know! I’m fascinated by this, especially because I believe so strongly in it and haven’t heard of this phenomenon anywhere else. I have my own theories, of course…
I know from doing quite a bit of research about skin in the realm of acne that the skin is actually quite absorbing. It’s not a wall protecting outside from inside quite like we think, and what is on our skin (skin care and make up for example) can really affect us if it’s toxic. Clothing made from unnatural fibers is made from plastic and is heavily processed with chemicals. I think it only makes sense that our skin has the potential to absorb chemicals from something that is touching the skin all day long.
Nourish Your Body
One of the best strategies to defeat SAD and live fully this winter is taking good care of your body. This year I completely cut out sugar and grains (except oatmeal very occasionally) in November and cut dairy in January. I know this has really impacted my energy levels and helped me feel alive as opposed to feeling like there’s a rock in my soul holding me down close to the earth. I’ve hardly felt sluggish or bloated or ick at all since doing this - it’s actually hard to remember that I used to feel that way. I noticed a HUGE change in my mood when I made the switch to focusing on giving my body the things it needed to thrive. I recently read the book “A Mind of Your Own” by Kelly Brogan MD and she explains why the way you eat can have a huge effect on depression. I highly highly recommend this book!!
It’s better to focus on giving your body the things it needs to be at it’s best rather than focusing on depriving yourself of sugar and grains. Enjoy lots of winter vegetables - squash of all types, carrots, beets, onions, and sweet potatoes. Your body needs hearty warm foods that naturally are available in winter, so eat what’s in season! For fruit, have things like cranberries and oranges. I love roasting my vegetables and we’ve been having them with venison steak. I also make a lot of roasted whole chickens (including the organs, they’re very good for you!) with vegetables and lots of herbs and ghee or olive oil in the crockpot. You can make broth with the vegetable juice and bones and have a delicious soup later! I’ve also been enjoying making almond crust quiche loaded with veggies. If I’m in the mood for a treat I’ll make a crumble with berries or apples and cranberries topped with an oat, coconut oil, coconut sugar, vanilla, and almond meal mixture, baked until browned and syrupy!
Supplements:
Eating well is always the top priority, and supplements will never work if you’re not taking care of your body first. That being said, there are a couple of things that can make a huge difference. I think giving your body the vitamins and supplements it needs is a great form of self-care!
St John’s Wort
I’ve been taking this since the beginning of winter and I do think it makes a difference. If I’m feeling extra moody on a day, I usually think through if anything is off that could cause it and sometimes I remember I forgot to take my supplements. My life has gone through so many changes since I began this supplement so it’s hard to tell for sure what’s going on. I think reading the Amazon reviews is helpful!
B-complex
A b-complex can help give you energy for your day. It’s important to take a complex because the B’s need to work together. I take this one: B-complex by Dr. Axe
Vitamin D
Since we are in short supply of the sun in winter, a vitamin d supplement can really help! It’s a good idea to get tested to see what your levels are, but if you feel like you’re definitely not getting enough sun a good quality vitamin d supplement could be a good idea.
Probiotics
Your gut health is crucial for everything, including depression. I read a fascinating study where participants took a probiotic for depression for 30 days with outstanding results! I found this so interesting. Everyone should be taking a probiotic, for many reasons. If you want to know more, read “A Mind of Your Own”, “You Can Fix Your Brain”, or “The Mind-Gut Connection”. Just make sure you take a good one - if it’s not properly formulated, the living probiotics could be killed by gut acid before they make it to the area of the gut that is beneficial for you. I’d recommend this one!
There are a few more supplements that are also important - here’s a video that goes through them by a youtube channel that I love, Pretty Well.
Sleep
This is one I haven’t mastered yet, but I know how central it is! Nothing in our human ecosystem is isolated - it all works together in a big spiral for better or worse. Eating well and getting sunshine will help you sleep well, sleeping well will give you energy for getting a good workout and getting a good workout will help you eat and sleep well, and so on and so on. All of these things get you far away from SAD. Everything affects everything. Especially, your physical state affects your mental state and vice versa. If you want to learn more about sleep, read “Sleep Smarter” by Shawn Stevenson. He covers everything. Some important points are making sure to be in bed by 10 pm because the most important hours of sleep are between 10-2 and it will set your circadian rhythm for best sleep at night and high energy during the day. Make sure your room is completely dark at night. You should associate your bed with sleep, so don’t spend time online or working in bed. Exercise in the morning makes a huge impact, as does eating well! It’s a good idea to not drink caffeine in the afternoon, stay away from blue light (screens) or wear blue light blocking glasses a few hours before bed. Allow your mind to calm down and rest by staying away from things that will get it racing like movies, work, social media - have tea and read a calming book or take time to chat with your spouse or a friend on the phone instead!
Exercise:
I know it’s challenging when you already feel really low energy to make the effort to exercise on top of everything else. It’s important to listen to what your body really needs and not make exercise a stressful part of your life, otherwise, you’ll have an even harder time actually doing it because you’ll dread it!
Your body might need a really restorative, kind type of exercise like hot yoga or walks outside. I did hot power yoga in winter and loved it because I really felt warm all the way to my bones, and also it wasn’t as difficult as other types of workouts so it was really gentle loving for me. I always looked forward to going and felt amazing afterward!
Perhaps your body is telling you that you need to really get your heart rate up and get your blood flowing all over your body to feel really great! You might need a really hard workout to feel fresh and rejuvenated, like hitt / burst or weight training. I know I feel really great if I get my heart rate really high and push myself during a workout, going harder than I think I can. It gives me energy and focus for the whole day!
I know both from experience and from researching the topic that working out makes a huge difference with depression. Workout because you care for your mind and you don’t want to feel awful mentally if nothing else - you don’t even have to think about getting into shape or put any pressure on yourself to be fit. If you find yourself feeling really badly just set the timer and go walk or put on a youtube yoga video for 10 minutes, you will feel so so much better! Just try it once and you’ll feel how true this is! Bonus points if you can find a positive person you enjoy being with as a workout buddy! This will double up on fighting SAD like nobody’s business!
Connecting to Nature:
Winter is hard on our bodies because we are so far away from the natural elements where we thrive! Sunshine and candles help, but I think there is even more that can benefit us.
Getting fresh air in winter is crucial! Think about it, we live shut up inside all winter, breathing in our house without letting fresh air breeze through, to our car, to our work, to home. I personally think that there are a lot of important nutrients in the air that we need - another thing I intuitively feel but haven’t found anything to back up! I know that just one long day flying and being in airports makes me feel sick and claustrophobic. I always try to take a big sip of air before stepping onto the plan but I get quite a bit of jet fuel instead, lol! Anyways, I am sure to go out and walk when I’m on the phone, meeting up with a friend, or need a little break. I park far out in the parking lots, too. Not only will you feel more energized, happier, and your brain more alive and ready to focus, you can also allow your body to produce vitamin d and melatonin!
Another way to connect with nature is grounding! When your bare skin contacts nature (the ground outside, for example). Your body pulls up electrons from the earth which act like antioxidants in the body (anti-oxidants combat free radicals preventing oxidative stress). Here’s a podcast explaining the topic better than I could!
Staying Inspired + Self-Care:
What it that makes you feel energized, inspired, and just feels like “you”? Boxing, hot baths, reading, coffee with a friend, going to a comedy club, getting a message, making yourself a gorgeous meal? It’s different for everyone. Maybe you automatically think of something or maybe you’ll need to keep trying things till you find that one thing. The important thing is knowing what it is for you. It has to be something that makes you feel super alive and energized after you do it. Once you know what it is, schedule it into your week so that it is a habit! I think everything in this article fits under the category of self-care, so you’ve got some ideas to start you off exploring!
What does it for me? I feel just out of this world amazing after soaking in sunshine and swimming. We got a hot tub last year which was really great for me! I also feel great after doing yoga, but only if I really let go of stress and relax into the breathing and rhythm of it. I also feel rejuvenated by having quiet time with candles and coffee, which I do every morning. Another thing that really does it for me is jiu-jitsu, which I took for years, or wrestling. If I have a lot of negative energy I challenge my husband to a wrestling match or get him to help me find something to punch. Sounds crazy but it really feels great! Reading is another thing that is extremely energizing for me. If I’m trying to improve an area in my life, I read a book about it and I feel that it is a sort of support system. Hearing from some one who believes in something so much that they wrote a book about it lights me on fire to do that thing! I read almost every day and it’s a huge mainstay for energizing my life this winter. If you want to try and need a place to start, read the book I’ve already mentioned, “A Mind of Your Own” and you’ll be well on your way out of seasonal affective disorder!! Find what it is for you, schedule it into your life, and you’re halfway there!
YOU CAN DO IT!!!
There you go! Here is your ticket out of a SAD winter! Start by just doing a few of these things, then work in the rest. Pick three you feel the most excited about, and prioritize making them a part of your life for the next month, and see how much of a difference you feel! The three I would choose as being the most effective would be getting sun exposure, wearing natural fibers only, and nourishing your body (avoiding sugar and glutenous grains completely, they really hijack your hormones and mood). It’s hard to choose between nourishment or exercise as being more important, but I think if you do one, you’ll find yourself craving the other - if you started doing yoga, you’d naturally begin craving hearty winter veggies and vice versa!
I’m really really excited to share this with you! This is something that has been absolutely life changing for me! In Virginia, winters last almost half the year, so it’s really a big deal! I never knew there was a way I could change how I felt, I just assumed it was normal and accepted it as being the way it was! Now that I know, I am so so passionate about this and have been really looking forward to sharing! I hope you will try these things. If you choose to, I hope you’ll let me know what a difference it’s made in your life, it would mean the world to me to hear of others who have experienced the same thing as I have!
Before you start getting overwhelmed, I need to tell you: this is 100% doable. This is a solution that is available to you! Feeling better is a change you can make! This is something you CAN DO! So do it! Decide what you will do, and schedule them on your phone calendar, right now! I would bet money that after two weeks of sticking to three of these things, you will feel an amazing, tangible difference. Make the change! Right now, this moment is the beginning. The beginning of feeling great this winter. It’s a new chapter for you!