wellness

Embracing the Season

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In December of 2024, and then revisited on the January 24, 2025, edition, All Things Considered profiled Kari Leibowitz and her study of the “wintertime mindset”. Fascinated by the data that pointed to countries at higher latitudes having fewer instances of seasonal depression during the winter, Leibowitz decided to see for herself. Relocating to the Arctic Circle in Norway, she spent a long, dark, cold winter in a deep-dive study of just what it was that produced the positive outlook of these Norwegians, as well as having observed and researched in Scandinavia and northern Japan, among other locations. Through her studies over the last decade, Leibowitz determined that winter can be “cozy, magical, and refreshing” if we will orient ourselves towards the positive aspects of it, rather than viewing winter as a season to be merely endured.

I am honestly in the middle of the best winter of my life. As fall began to wind down last year, I found something in my soul yearning for winter, for the cold, for the barren dormancy, and especially for the profound quiet of snowfall. I determined, at some unconscious point, that I was going to enjoy my wintering this year. So far, we have gotten a fair amount of snow here in my state, and, while my hips and back hate me when I have to shovel it, I have still enjoyed it immensely. The beauty of its falling, the muffling quality of its blanket outside, and how it obliterates all the blemishes, rendering the world a clean, blank slate for a while. I have opened my blinds to watch the snowglobe world outside as it falls, wrapped in cozy blankets and warmed by my fireplace.

I have loved it when it has been so very cold outside that the very air itself seemed to sparkle. I have covered my home with light — candles and strings of sparkling bulbs–to combat the long winter dark outside. The tree will remain up for the remainder of the season, reflecting joy in its twinkle and glow.

I have wrapped myself in warm sweaters, comfy hoodies, softs socks, and thick leggings, dressings for the cold that will also keep me cozy within if the heating struggles against the might of the icy air without. I am enjoying layers of skirts, knit, and boots, living out my Outlander-inspired dreams.

I have thoroughly embraced Winter this year, and I am loving it. I am loving this low-energy season of life, enjoying leaning into the rest and quiet and calm of my blankets, books, coffee, and cat. I am purposefully building relaxation and dormancy into my winter life, holding the principles of hygge (Denmark) and mys (Sweden) close to my heart.

I am adoring Winter and finding it refreshing in ways that I had not expected. For example, my appetite for books and stories (which has always been healthy) has skyrocketed. I am experiencing such joy in the anticipation and eagerness to sit down to read every day. I have stocked up candles in all my favorite scents, the ones that send my body and mind instantly into relax mode. Those scents transition me back into my sense of home and cozy belonging, knowing that I am safe in my little hobbit hole and the rest of the world can wait until tomorrow.

So, if you’ll excuse me, my blankets and books are calling.

If you’d like to know more about Kari Leibowitz’s studies, you can check out her book How to Winter: Harness Your Mindset to Thrive on Cold, Dark, or Difficult Days.

Fragile. Handle with Care: Being Gentle With Myself

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I have been sick, quite sick, for the past month. Actually, I haven’t been able to shake this cold/sinus stuff since September (yay for teaching and a toddler starting preschool). Nevertheless, the New Year came and with it the time to start on my goals, one of the chiefest being to get back into a healthy routine of activity and exercise. This past semester has just shattered my momentum and I have lost a good deal of what I worked for two years to gain. So I start again. But, because of being sick (and because, you know, breathing is a thing), I am having to start back slowly. Too much activity will leave me wheezing and coughing, my throat sore and dry. So I am having to be extra gentle with myself, not something I am used to doing. I am used to pushing myself. I want to push, pull, work, strive, and mold myself back into that shape and tone that I was so proud of back in July. So, right now, it is proving hard to handle myself gently, but I have to or else I will hurt myself and ruin any chance of continuing towards my goal for the foreseeable future. I have to listen to when my body cries “Enough!” and believe that, for the nonce, it really is (and has to be) enough.

This year’s word of intention is gentleness and, ironically, here I am: at the beginning of the year, having to apply that gentleness to my own self. I am having to sit down when I come home from work. Perhaps the dishes go undone or the laundry unfolded of a night as I choose to lie on the couch instead, after Daughter has been put to bed, and I’m having to remind myself that doing just that is okay.  I have never been good at being gentle with myself, so I have found that I need reminders. The graphic below from Alia Joy – Writer‘s likewise-title article is now the lock screen graphic on my phone. I have a chalkboard that hangs in my kitchen and on it is the quote: “Be easier on yourself. If being hard on yourself worked, it would have worked by now.” These are reminders that I have to keep on repeat in my mind and in my heart. I find it ever so much easier to say them to others, admonish gentleness with themselves, and believe their truth than I do when I am the one in need of the reminder. But I do need it. I need gentleness, too! Particularly from myself.

So, while it is frustrating and a bit galling to have to slow down and just concentrate on the small things in my goals for now, it is what I need. I need to hold myself softly and gently for, right now, no matter how I may feel mentally, I am physically a bit fragile, so I have to let my ability catch up to my determination.

It is okay for you to be gentle with yourself, too. If you think you need permission, you have it. There are times when we all are fragile and need handling with care. So, as we continue on into the second week of this new year, let’s check in on how we are handling ourselves, how we are treating ourselves. Could you use a little gentleness, a little lightening of the goals, of the have-to’s? If so, do it. Be gentle with yourself. I know it’s hard and I know the fear of falling behind/failing/losing our place/etc. is always there, but know that you aren’t alone. We all could a little gentleness from ourselves now and then and it’s worth it to learn to give it. And I’m learning to believe that.

 

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Graphic from and belonging to Alia Joy’s post on incourage.me