Winter

Winter is coming up, and though our weather has been beautiful lately, it is getting darker and the cold is coming.  Since I am trying to come up with a health plan for the winter, I have been looking for the benefits of winter, the challenges of winter, and solutions to the winter blues, or SAD.  I already deal with some depression, and when the sun isn't seen as much, this often becomes more of a battle.

One of the good things I learned from Business Insider is that cold temperatures can help people think more clearly, which I think means I will all of a sudden be smarter if I go outside :-) There are other things too, but that was my favorite.

What's hard about winter?  It's dark.  And often cold.  It's kind of gray, and not fun to drive around in if it's slushy or icy.  I can start to feel trapped, or like I spent the best part of my days inside working instead of enjoying the smaller amount of sunshine.

So here are some ideas I want to try for dealing with the dark. 

1.  In the dark music sessions

2.  Candlelight (It makes the dark romantic instead of bleak).

3.  Twinkle lights or party lights. (Mine are already in place!)

4.  Bright colored decor

5.  Use a Happy Light (we love ours!)

6.  Load the family in the car with a thermos of hot chocolate / hot citrus and go to someplace dark to look at the stars!

7.  Hide and go seek is fun in the dark.  Someone taught us about "Hide and go seek with socks".  You don't wear socks necessarily.  The person who is it uses them to throw at the people who are trying to sneak to home base.  If you get hit with the socks you are out!

8.  Wear warm clothes and go outside as much as possible -- especially to the woods, or a park.

9.  Do service to brighten someone elses dark day!

10.  Meditate, or offer up prayers of thanks.

11.  Communicate with other people!  

12.  Do Tai Chi or Yoga

13.  Work on an indoor hobby (painting, sewing, writing)

14.  Play games or do puzzles

15.  Make meals festive!

"In the depths of winter, I finally learned there was in me an invincible summer."                     Albert Camus

I'm hoping we can all discover an invincible summer inside ourselves no matter how dark, cold, and hard to deal with our winter may be!