Mid-winter blahs

iVillage Member
Registered: 09-22-1999
Mid-winter blahs
7
Sat, 01-29-2005 - 6:45am

Had enough of this winter? Getting the blues or the blahs? Cabin fever? Sick of coming home in the cold dark from work every night? Tired of warming up the car to go out or piling on layers to stay warm?

What are some ways that we can combat the mid-winter blahs that don't cost any money or only cost a handful of coins? How can we escape without taking a vacation or going shopping?

What are your mid-winter blah symptoms? Any cravings? Any bad habits? Any good habits?
Do you have something you are looking forward to that will get you through to spring?

What keeps you from letting the mid-winter blahs from sinking you further in debt? Or have you sunk further in debt?

Thank you for sharing! Littlesbigs

iVillage Member
Registered: 03-27-2003
Sat, 01-29-2005 - 8:31am

Have a light celebration! Feb 2 is known is some cultures as the celebration of Brigit (it's celebrated in the U.S. as Groundhog Day). It marks the end of the darkest quarter of the year, and the beginning of signs of Spring to come--crocuses appearing in the snow, seeds beginning to germinate, etc.

We're having a little celebration to mark the holiday, with candles and an outdoor fire pit, lots of food and fun. It's also a time to celebrate the "little luxuries" in life--the cinnamon in your hot cider, the honey in your tea. In more rural times, winter meant not only darkness and cold, but also that most of the vegetables and fruits that were so prolific in summer were gone. So Brigit was a time to bring out that last batch of fruit preserves and serve it with bread to remind ourselves that winter is almost over and soon it will be time to enjoy fresh fruits and vegetables again, and to be grateful that we still have the stored foods from last summer.

I plan to bake a loaf and stuff it with jam and dried fruits to serve our friends, in addition to other things, but as a reminder of our agricultural past.

Anyway, this little celebration adds a bright spot to the dark months and reminds me in a very concrete way that we'll be done soon and back to the brightness of Spring and Summer, and helps me keep plugging through the dreariness.

So, that's what I do. :)

Heather

iVillage Member
Registered: 12-20-2003
Sat, 01-29-2005 - 9:50am

Heather ~ I had to laugh about your post, because up here in rural Maine, you pretty much described my community. Yes, we do have grocery stores (lol) but our state's main industry is agriculture, and in the winter, things get very tight for a lot of families up here, and I know a LOT of people who spend all winter eating their jarred/preserved foods. Spring is definitely a welcome sight up here! I like your idea of celebrating Brigit.

What helps me deal with the winter blues? Hmm.. I hate winter so much, it's hard to think of something. :) At work, I am outside a lot, and I hate it. With two young kids, I am outside a lot, and I hate it. BUT I have discovered that if you PRETEND you don't mind it so much, you actually don't. If you moan and cry about it, it makes it 100x worse. So when I go out with my kids, ice skating or sledding, etc. I set a time limit (say, an hour) so there is an end in sight and then I try to enjoy it as much as I can, so that THEY can enjoy it. And as much as I hate the cold, I think it is good for me to be outside as much as I am, since sunlight is useful for battling depression, even in the cold winter months.

I am also a hot cocoa freak, so I remind myself how miserable it is drinking hot cocoa when it is 80 degrees outside. :) So on cold winter nights, after I put the kids to bed, I snuggle up with a blanket and a cup of hot cocoa and it's one of the coziest things in the world. :)

Stay warm!
~Kiya

Avatar for cl_phocid
iVillage Member
Registered: 03-26-2003
Sat, 01-29-2005 - 10:59am

I'm with Kiya - LOVE cocoa on a cold winter's nite.


Honestly - the best way to battle the winter blahs for me is with exercise.

All my best,
Danni

Avatar for gidgetgirl
iVillage Member
Registered: 03-26-2003
Sat, 01-29-2005 - 11:15am

I'm not quite at the winter blahs yet but I feel them coming soon.

What are some ways that we can combat the mid-winter blahs that don't cost any money or only cost a handful of coins? How can we escape without taking a vacation or going shopping?
You could bundle up and go for a hike outside on a warmer day. Build a snowman- getting sunlight helps with the winter blahs and exercise is always good too! Work on some crafts. Spend low-cost time with friends watching a movie (one someone already owns), and play games and using the fireplace is you have one. If you have the shopping bug, do it with the Christmas giftcards if they aren't already spent.

What are your mid-winter blah symptoms? Any cravings? Any bad habits? Any good habits?
Do you have something you are looking forward to that will get you through to spring?
Crabby, just a general out of sorts feeling. Shopping can give me a high of finding a good deal, so I have to find other things like cooking a good meal, scrapbooking a few pages and other things that make me feel good. DS and I have started reading big books together and that is fun. Right now we are reading Black Beauty...

What keeps you from letting the mid-winter blahs from sinking you further in debt? Or have you sunk further in debt?
Trying to focus on fun and engerizing things that are free or very low cost.

iVillage Member
Registered: 03-28-2003
Sat, 01-29-2005 - 12:37pm
When I've had enough, I pull the curtains and start cooking. Honey wheat bread, beef stew, mashed potatoes, you name it. I have saved money because I really just don't feel like going anywhere when it is 2 degrees outside. I watch movies, take long, hot showers, dance with the kids. I read the paper, write letters, make phone calls I've been putting off. Sometimes, I even clean house. I used to hate being couped up, but now I am on the go so much, I *like* it (so long as there is food in the house.) And though I usually don't go on vacation in the winter, I do start planning one....gives me something to look forward to : )
Avatar for mahopac
iVillage Member
Registered: 07-24-1997
Sat, 01-29-2005 - 2:25pm

I try to get out of being influenced by the weather as much as possible. I try to focus on more spiritual matters, on working hard, on exercising, basically on anything that isn't affected by bad weather. I try to take a retreat in January or February. I always look forward to Ash Wednesday and focus on the spiritual and bodily discipline of Lent. These are good months for putting in extra effort at work or the gym, because once you get past the initial "ugh," those habits are self-reinforcing.

I don't bother looking at clothing catalogs until at least mid-February, and I definitely don't shop. I don't plan warm-weather activities either at this stage, and I don't look at pictures of people in the sun!

This morning my daughters and I went to the food pantry, which is always a good antidote to self-pity (as pleasant as the clients often are, no one is happy about having to go to the food pantry for free groceries they have no choice in).

There are no end of ways to remind myself of how well off I am.

Kelly

iVillage Member
Registered: 08-02-2001
Sat, 01-29-2005 - 11:42pm

We moved from Southern New England to Florida 5.5 years ago to get away from the winter blahs!! We had the blahs all the time! DH and I both hated winter as it was really never ending. Right now our winter consists of days in the mid-60s and nights in the 50s. I can deal with that, LOL. I actually get the mid-summer blahs because it gets really humid and just hot, hot, hot! Never higher than 92 or so, but it feels miserable with the humidity. That's when we tend to stay inside with the a/c on and only venture out to shop or do errands after dark.

We don't miss the snow or ice at all!! I have to admit that last August and September, during the worst hurricane season that FL has seen in years, the snow was looking pretty attractive compared to hurricanes!!