The post-holiday blues are in full swing, and we all need to take extra care of our mental health at this time of the year. I’m sure finding easy ways to lift your mood is one of your top priorities right now. Personally, both my mood and energy levels are generally low in January. In the past, I’ve used the fact that it’s my birthday month 🎉 to host a party and gather my favourite people around for food and drinks. However, this is not easy to do anymore.
If you’re afraid of feeling the negative effects of the “most depressing day of the year” (Blue Monday is next week), there are ways to cope. My suggestions may not suit everyone – nothing ever does – but they lift up my mood every time. From my childhood winter soup to the best films I’ve watched recently, here is a curated list of 8 activities I recommend if you’re not feeling amazing right now, and in need of a healthy pick me up.
What is SAD?
Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD) is a common health issue affecting a lot of people during the winter months. It’s caused by the lack of sunshine and fall in temperatures, which result in low mood and energy levels. They last from autumn until spring usually. The symptoms can worsen over time, and if you feel that is the case for you, don’t waste time and seek help from a GP. In this article, I’m going over some lifestyle changes I make when I feel my SAD is out of control. For medical advice and information on light or talking therapies with professionals, head to the NHS website.
My favourite Blue Monday remedies
Watching a brilliant film
I like to browse Mubi and watch an independent film that will transport me away from reality for a couple hours. Although I love an easy watch like a rom-com (A Good Year by Ridley Scott is my favourite), I’m also very keen on discovering new voices and talents.
If you’re not familiar with this streaming platform, Mubi has a 7-day trial you can claim before making up your mind. If you do, I recommend watching Shiva Baby and Limbo, two brilliant films released in 2020. On Netflix, I’d recommend The Lost Daughter and Don’t Look Up for more mainstream picks.
Making a warming soup from scratch
French people love their soups and I grew up eating a homemade soup almost every night. A traditional one may include heavy cream and petits lardons (bacon), which I’ve removed from my daily meals a long time ago. My version of the French winter soup includes 4 or 5 different types of vegetables, cooked together sous-vide and mixed with a handheld immersion blender.
I like to combine potatoes, carrots, parsnips, half a cauliflower, mushrooms (for Vitamin D) and kale. I receive them through Oddbox every Sunday. To replace animal-derived ingredients, I use canned coconut milk or oat cream blended with vegetarian stock and fresh spices. It tastes like a hug.
Walking in nature and sunlight
In my 2022 resolutions article, I mentioned how much I love going on long walks in London, especially in parks and woodlands. “Forest bathing” is a mindfulness exercise that involves immersing oneself amongst the trees, touching their bark and and feeling the mental calmness they provide. It other words: tree hugging.
Although you don’t have to do it quite literally, planning a day out during which you’ll be surrounded by trees and away from screens is a great way to release stress. This series of pockets books is great source of inspiration to find hidden walking itineraries in London.
Brewing a cup of herbal tea
It may be my 7 years in the UK talking but I’m a tea addict. I drink a few cups a day and tend to choose aromatic herbal teas. If you’re concerned about your plastic consumption at home, I suggest switching to loose leaf tea rather than individually packaged ones. It’s less packaging for the exact same result. There are several methods you can use to brew loose leaf tea.
I love this mug with built-in infuser by Kusmi Tea Paris that I’ve gifted my mom a few years ago. I personally own a little floating egg-shaped infuser in stainless steel, which is very practical and zero-waste. I also like Pukka Teas. They’re fair trade and COSMOS organic certified. Unfortunately, they still come individually packaged.
Reflecting on personal style
There isn’t a better time than now to do a review of your wardrobe and a little bit of style introspection. With very few social events happening and the rest of the year still ahead of you, now is a great moment to plan and edit your personal style. This will help you buy less and wear more this year. It’s fun, light and you can even do it with your friends. It will help you stick to your slow fashion goals and rekindle your relationship with your clothes. Read my mini-guide to help you get started.
Learning something new
Whether you decide to learn from books or through online classes, discovering something new about a topic you’re interested in is a great way to lift up your mood this January. I recently bought a couple of courses from a platform called Domestika. Each course is taught by a different creative person in areas such as graphic design, craft, writing,… in various languages including English, Spanish, French and Portuguese.
I also love Coursera and Future Learn to take short classes from top universities around the world. The latter has over 30 fashion-related courses from Compassion in Fashion: Sustainability and the Global Fur Trade to Fashion and the Climate Crisis: An Introduction to Sustainability.
Moving and exercising
That’s probably the harder thing to do from this list but it’s also the most rewarding. The long-term benefits of exercise on your mind and body, coupled with the feeling of personal achievement, are second to none. It doesn’t need to be a strenuous HIIT sesh or a 50-minute run either.
Pick what’s right for you, your motivation, and your level so you can come back to it regularly and improve your fitness over time. I personally use the app Sweat because I can customise every workout. I can’t recommend it enough. When I’m really not feeling like sweating, I either do an inclined walk on the treadmill or a low impact pilates-inspired stretching session for 15-20 minutes.
Writing everything down
I’m a writer so I had to include my favourite activity here. Writing is one of the best ways I found to separate those annoying thoughts or negative self-talk from my restless mind. It’s very useful when thoughts are swirling around or the same thought comes back on repeat. I like to use proper old school stationary or a word doc depending on what’s available, and write things down in a very disorderly fashion.
A good habit is to look back at these notes and cringe a bit about yourself. It really helps with keeping things real and realising that some things you thought were very important, ended up being specks of nothing in the grand scheme of things.
Conclusion
All of these activities are better done without screens and with loved ones, so don’t hesitate to get other people you love and trust involved. Staying away from screens is hard enough to do it on our own. Although I enjoy sharing my discoveries on social media with other people and I’m sure you do too, my final advice is to try to always live the moment first because that moment will never come back.
