Experiencing “Winter Blues”? — You Are Not Alone
By: Anirban Kar
Tags: Mental Illness, Life, Self, Mental Health, Self Improvement

How Did I Do It? What Was the Treatment?

According to Mayo Clinic, the treatment for winter blues, or seasonal affective disorder — ranges from light therapy, medication to psychotherapy. For me, it was a combination of medication and psychotherapy.

My therapist put me on pills for the next three months. That would be the colder months of December, January, and February. I started visiting her in late November. However, she planned a three-layer program for me to follow. And those were:

Habit Perception Activities

1. Habit

If you go through an article from Healthline titled Lifestyle Changes for Depression, you will be amazed at how our lifestyle choices impact our mental health. And this is where I was lagging.

Even though I have stayed away from additives (I don’t even drink tea, if it makes sense)all my life, I had an insanely disorganized lifestyle. Moreover, there was an overall lack of constructive habits. Therefore, after studying my background, she assigned me a few new practices.

Reading books: After my graduation in English Literature in 2016, I got busy with my work. And for the next couple of years, I had not read a single book. She quickly corrected me, sighting the importance of reading. And I can’t thank her enough for it. By reading books, I filled myself with so much empathy and emotion my suffering started feeling insignificant.

After my graduation in English Literature in 2016, I got busy with my work. And for the next couple of years, I had not read a single book. She quickly corrected me, sighting the importance of reading. And I can’t thank her enough for it. By reading books, I filled myself with so much empathy and emotion my suffering started feeling insignificant. Watching good movies: Okay, let me be honest here. It is not something my therapist told me to do. Instead, I have been a movie buff for the better part of the last decade. She only encouraged me to carry on the ritual. Watching good movies is one of the only things in my life, keeping me intact, even under extreme life-altering anomalies.

Okay, let me be honest here. It is not something my therapist told me to do. Instead, I have been a movie buff for the better part of the last decade. She only encouraged me to carry on the ritual. Watching good movies is one of the only things in my life, keeping me intact, even under extreme life-altering anomalies. Sound sleeping habits: I have been a light sleeper all my life. And much of my mental strain comes from there. As a result, I still store prescribed sleeping pills. However, I rarely need to take them. I have learned plenty of breathing exercises and little tricks and tips to relax my mind and muscles. I wouldn’t go on stating I sleep like a baby. But I don’t stay up all night, stressing myself to death either. Following a fixed sleeping routine has helped me, in this case, a lot.

2. Perception

In an article by Healthtalk, multiple patients come forward to talk about their experience with distorted self-perception and how it pushed them to a dark void of mental illness. I was no different.

My years of losses and traumas redefined how I used to see myself, creating an image of a powerless victim in my mind.

As a result, I inadvertently defused all my coping mechanisms.

My therapist taught me to be objective and neutral in my perception (reading fiction helped too). She further trained me to go easy on attachments, minimizing my expectations from others in the process. Most importantly, she set me free to feel whatever I felt at the moment. No longer did I need to feel guilty for not feeling okay.

In her words:

It is a part of the deal. Feeling unfavorable emotions is nothing but a natural byproduct of your mind processing all your thoughts.

I can say I am an entirely new person because of her guidance. Moreover, practicing an objective mindset helps me keep my ego in check, minimizing emotional reactions to every little thing beyond my control.

3. Activities

She strictly instructed me to engage in a healthy amount of physical exercise to keep the blood circulation well — especially during the winters. Of course, I will be first to admit that this is an instruction I have been struggling to keep up with due to this pandemic. As a result, I have put on some loose weight, making me somewhat sensitive to winter blues again this year.

But last year, I went all-in on her advice and would cycle every single day for hours. My body felt light and filled with flowing energy. Consequently, I spent a charming winter last year, free from the wintery weight.

Does positivity help?

Well, the answer depends on your definition of positivity. If your version of positive thinking discourages you from feeling anything less than ecstatic, then I will say it could be a source of illness in itself.

On the other hand, if you take positivity as an upbeat attitude while handling those dreaded aspects of life, acknowledging and accepting the natural negative emotions, yes, you will need that.

If you are a believer of the former definition, don’t feel bad about it. It is not your fault. We all want to embrace the feelings of happiness and reject the feelings of dread. You are not the only one. But it is crucial to accept the natural spectrum of human emotions for the sake of our mental health.

However, there are certain times in your day. Those are with no room for anything but a sense of positivity. And that would be the brief moments before sleeping as well as the minutes following after you wake up.