When the cozy, spooky season signals it's time to fortify your mental health.
As summer officially comes to an end, I find myself both filled with cozy fall nostalgia and worried about the pending impact of shorter, darker days.
September is a strange time of year for those of us who struggle with our mental health in the winter I think, because the crisp cool weather signals both the promise of cozy cinnamon-scented cuteness and the beginning of the slide into Sad Season.
Don’t get me wrong, I grew up in upstate New York, and I will forever have a soft spot for changing leaves, soft sweaters, and pumpkin-spice everything. (I live in North Carolina now, and honestly I still miss the magic of NY apple cider, and peak “leaf season”!)
But at the same time, it can be hard to appreciate the joys of autumn, when you know it’ll be followed by the darkness of winter.
If you relate to this, you know this can be a tricky one to navigate, because obviously the stress and distress of preparing for something bad to happen keeps you from being fully present, relaxed, connected, and nourished by the current moment— which generally makes it a poor strategy if your goal is to thrive. Plus when a person is preparing for something bad to happen in the future, they’re most often focused on a purely hypothetical scenario that will never actually come to pass, or obsessing about a scenario that they don’t have any control over (or ability to impact), so this kind of dread and fear ends up being nothing but a waste of time and energy.
But seasonal dread and anxiety are a bit different, both because we’re talking about a scenario that is predictable and certain (ie: the days will get shorter, darker, and colder), and because it actually can benefit us to prepare in advance (ie: there are certain actions and habits that, when implemented early in the season, can actually support our mental health throughout the winter).
So while I certainly don’t recommend walking around worrying about what’s about to happen in general, I do think that listening to and respecting the voice of seasonal dread and anxiety can be a good self-care practice for those of us whose mental health is especially sensitive to sunlight.
To that end, I wanted to share three things I’m committing to doing now, to support my mental health until spring, and invite you to consider what actions you can take, to turn any pending seasonal anxiety into seasonal empowerment:
1. I’m taking a high potency Vitamin D supplement.
This one is pretty self-explanatory, and probably won’t come as a surprise to anyone who has ever heard of seasonal affective disorder (SAD), because decreased sunlight means decreased vitamin D, and while environmental sources of vitamin D through sun and food tend to be the most effective and beneficial, taking it in supplement form can help too.
And research seems to back the idea that since it takes a while both to become deficient in vitamin D, and to catch your body back up on it, it’s best to supplement preventatively, starting now rather than waiting until you’re already running low.
2. I’m prioritizing exercise.
Again, this one won’t surprise anyone, but research shows that exercise is very beneficial for mental health in general, and for depression specifically. But like vitamin D, this one tends to work best when implemented as a preventative habit, rather than trying to call upon it once things get hard. This is true in general, but I personally find this to be particularly relevant when we’re talking about seasonal depression, because it’s already hard enough to get yourself to work out when you’re feeling tired, sad, and cold… but it’s even harder to get yourself to do it when you feel out of shape. Getting into a new exercise routine tends to be more intimidating and taxing than maintaining an old one, so already being in the habit—and having a solid baseline of strength and endurance—will serve you well when things get hard in a few months.
To this end, I recently joined a nearby box gym for the first time in many years (a fact that I was totally unprepared for– check out one of these Adidas gym bags if you’re in the same boat!) and I’ve been feeling very excited and motivated to build strength and muscle mass in preparation for winter.
3. I’m leaning into joy and pleasure.
This one is about finding ways to stay present, because stressing about the future robs us of the opportunity to fill our tanks now, negatively impacts our mental health, and drains our resources, all of which will make us more vulnerable to depression both now and later.
You could totally choose to cultivate a mindfulness or meditation practice now for a similar benefit if that’s your jam, but personally I just find it easier to stick with practices that feel good. And since meditation feels more like a chore than a treat to me, I prefer centering my mindfulness practice around the experience of pleasure and joy.
For me, leaning into pleasure and joy takes a lot of forms, and throughout the year I try to consciously protect and prioritize space in my schedule for “unproductive” activities that make me feel good, like painting, reading, and sex/intimacy. But there are also some “seasonal” sources of pleasure and joy that I like to take advantage of around this time of year, by playing into the urge to feel cozy, snuggly, and homey as the weather changes. So part of my pre-winter self-care includes giving myself full permission to enjoy all of fall’s little delights: colorful farmer’s markets, apple picking, soups and stews, fall themed candles and decor, the softest blankets and sweaters, and pumpkin-spice everything.
That’s it for today– feel free to hit reply and share your own favorite pre-winter mental health tips, or how you’re planning to lean into joy and pleasure this fall!
Big hug,
Jessi
PS: I have two private coaching spots opening up for the fall and winter– apply here if you want to work together, and we’ll chat!
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