Winter can be a tough time for some, Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD) is a definite thing. The nights are cold, the days are shorter, and the reduction in sunshine can make even the brightest of buttons feel down, and well and truly FED UP.
So what can YOU do to keep the winter blues at bay…
Look after yourself
It sounds like a simple thing, but it is all too easy to neglect yourself over the winter months. It is easy to take the simplest route; to back off looking after your hair, or doing your make up because the weather really doesn’t make you want to “care” – but don’t succumb! Defy the weather; treat yourself to some funky new make up, or make sure you have a top drawer winter hairstyle. The more you pay attention to the way you look, the better you will FEEL too.
Don’t just stop with the hair, and the make up, it is worth exploring some new winter styles too. Why not give yourself a complete winter make over – what harm can it do? It might be cold outside, but that doesn’t mean you can’t rock the latest winter look without getting too cold, does it?
We’ve even got a few winter layering tips for you – in case you fancy trying something a little bit different with the kids too!
Get outside
As well as being tempting to ignore your hair, and appearance, it can be all too tempting not to bother to venture outside. It is, after all, damn cold!
However, getting the body moving, will help the mind to be occupied beyond the mundane, and to get those grey cells active and those legs moving, can only be good for your body and soul. The more you get outside, the healthier and happier you will be, despite the cold.
Yes it is cold, but if you pick the right day, and the right places, you can find some of the most beautiful and inspiring scenery when it is cold.
Who can resist a snow-filled scene to lift the mind, and help get rid of those winter blues?
Town and Country have some fabulous ideas for where to go to take in some of the best Wintry scenes in the UK. And as the winter months come to a close, there are some simply stunning places to bring in the spring, particularly the Garden at Easton Lodge, and Anglesey Abbey. Both have THE MOST gorgeous snowdrop walks.
Think about getting a light box
Because the hours of daylight are so much reduced in the winter, it is worth thinking about getting yourself a light box to help combat this. The NHS even recommend doing so to help beat the winter blues.
Light boxes are very high intensity lights, and there are medically certified ones available on Amazon. Duronic offer affordable ones (UK Affiliate link); around £65 each. Shop around and see what looks best for you.
To be effective, a light box needs to be at least 10,000 lux; so make sure you look for the right intensity. You will be given the luminescence figure alongside the distance the box needs to be from you to achieve that intensity.
So that’s three ways to help beat the winter blues – we know its tough, so what other ideas to you have? Let us know in the comments below.
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Enjoy your day, and come back soon!
HelenG
This is a collaborative post.
Helen
Helen is a mum to two, social media consultant, and website editor; and this site is (we think) the only Social Enterprise parenting magazine!Since giving up being a business analyst when juggling travel, work and kids proved too complicated, she founded KiddyCharts so she could be with her kids, and use those grey cells at the same time.KiddyCharts has reach of over 1.1million across social and the site. The blog works with big family brands (including travel) to help promote their services, as well as offering free resources to parents of kids under 10.It gives 51%+ profits to Reverence for Life, who fund a number of important initiatives in Africa, including bringing running water and basic equipment to a school in Tanzania.Helen has worked as a digital marketing consultant (IDM qualified) with various organisations, including Channel Mum, Truprint, Talk to Mums, and Micro Scooters. She loves to be creative in the brand campaigns she works on.Get in touch TODAY!