What’s With The Winter Blues?
Is it time to banish the winter blues?
Are you already holed up, staying warm in the confines of your home each evening? I don’t blame you! I’m a home-bird at the best of times and when it’s cold, wet and dark it can certainly be easy to pass the evenings in front of the TV.
And therefore, staying motivated, active, in good health and connected to others can all suffer far too easily at this time of year.
Our wellbeing is more than just whether we manage to avoid the office lurgy this winter; it’s about our sense of belonging, our enjoyment of daily life, our ability to still move forward with whatever we desire.
Top 5 Tips – Keep it Simple!
I’d love to hear what you do in the dark winter months to keep yourself healthy and happy. Here’s my top 5 super simple tips.
☀️ See The Light – when the days are shorter it’s even more important to see daylight as often as possible. As soon as it’s light in the morning and throughout the day before the early sunset. Even if it’s cloudy, you’ll still get some benefit. Getting daylight exposure to your eyes helps keep your internal body clock in rhythm which then has lots of mood and health benefits.
🙋♀️ Stay Connected – being connected to friends, family and our community is really important for wellbeing, and when we lock ourselves away from the moment we get home it’s easy to lose this. So stay in touch by arranging to spend time together, doing activities with others, getting on the phone and generally engaging with the people you meet. I’m not sure I’d put social media in this category, but you might think differently.
🥕 Max Out On Veggies – we need all the nutrients we can possibly consume in order to boost that immunity. It’s time to turn to nourishing soups, stews, casseroles to really pack them in, although I do still love a smoothie and salad in winter.
🛌 Maintain Your Sleep Routine – I often find that sleep routines can be really variable in the winter. The body and brain both like routine, so to get the best possible sleep throughout the winter months stick with a regular routine around bed-time and wake-time. Sleep is super important for many areas of health and is also linked to immune health.
🚶🏻♀️Keep Moving – activity levels can really drop off in the winter, so find a routine that works for you, that you enjoy, and which you can maintain. As you know I love getting out for a walk and one of the benefits of being self-employed is that I can choose when I do these things. In the summer I can be out at 6, whereas now I’m choosing to do a couple of hours work first and then get out and see the daylight.
Oh and a sneaky 6th 😂 ………. Smiles & Laughter – they really are the best medicine!
Keep Smiling!
So let’s keep each other smiling and happy this winter 😁 💛
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