While some people might be ticking off the days until Christmas, my eye is already on spring (although I’ve so far resisted the urge to download the spring countdown widget). If you live in Australia or Arizona, the onset of the northern hemisphere’s fall and winter may not be such a big deal to you. I’ve spent most of my life in the Pacific Northwest, however, where approximately 105 percent of the population is Vitamin D deficient and hydroplaning is just a regular part of driving.
If you’re in the same boat floating car as me, there are some simple things you can do that are really effective at combating what might be seasonal affective disorder (SAD), or just the winter doldrums.
Music
This time last year, I wrote about using music as a mood booster. I’m still building up my ‘Anthems’ playlist of upbeat songs (and suggestions are always welcome) as I’ve realized that I need to make an intentional shift in the kind of music I listen to at this time of the year. Do you try to do the same?
Movies
The same happy-music logic can also be applied to movies; comedies are mood boosters. Since I tend to load my Netflix queue with morose foreign films, I recently went in there and did some reordering. Flicks like “The Secret in Their Eyes” got pushed down the list in favor of “Kinky Boots,” “Mamma Mia!” and some others suggested by friends.
Food
Have you heard the tip, “always shop the perimeter of the grocery store?” The fresh, raw, unprocessed food is almost always on the outer edges of the floor plan, while the center aisles are filled with, er, less desirable items. Take this recent Safeway ad, for example, which tries to draw you in with the temptation of “the wonder of pancakes in a pouch,” “feast upon the liquid gold,” (uh, that’s mac and cheese, and if anyone considers that feast-worthy, please seek guidance), Pop Tarts, and “Girl Scouts Creamer” (shouldn’t that be “Girl Scouts Cookie-Flavored Creamer? Just sayin’…).
No, you must revolt against the revolting and go straight for the things that were either once alive or came from something that was once alive. The link between depression and food has been proven, so we’re not joking around here. Seriously.
Light Therapy
I like to pretend that aliens are accessing my thoughts when I turn on my goLITE P2 light box and let the blue waves penetrate my retinas, but that’s just me. You might make up some other far-fetched fantasy for your light box, like you’re a rock star, on stage, bathed in the spotlight of fame (okay, I do that one, too). Whatever gets conjured up in your head, it’s all better than just waking up to grey every day. Even the Mayo Clinic agrees.
What other tricks have you got up your sleeves? Please throw them into the comment bag so we can all get through these less-sunny seasons in relatively good spirits. And then, it will be spring before we know it!
“Letters to Juliet” is a good film to add to your Netflix list, Laura – beautiful Italian countryside bathed in summer sun, simple feel good plot and real-life couple Vanessa Redgrave and Franco Nero acting everyone else off the screen. Uplifting, hopeful and lots of vitamin D by proxy.
That sounds perfectly lovely, Debbie, and I’ve added it to my Netflix queue! Thanks.
Great post, Laura, even though we’re heading into stinkin’ hot summer this side of the Pacific (and equator).
What’s up Doc? (the 70s movie with Barbra Streisand and Ryan O’Neal) always makes me snort drinks out my nose. You could put that on your list. The Princess Bride is another good ‘un.
Oh, thank you for coming up with What’s Up Doc — it’s now in my queue. I’d just recently had The Way We Were come up in my suggested movies on Netflix, and I thought, I love Streisand but I can’t take that one right now! And you know, I think I must be the last person on earth who hasn’t seen The Princess Bride, so into the queue it goes, as well! Enjoy your stinkin’ hot summer, Belinda. I am a wee bit envious, still.
This makes me smile, I spend Summer dealing with my depression, it’s much less known, but Summer SAD exists. Autumn/Winter invigorates me despite the constant UK rain!
The same strategies work though, especially music, I’ve recently started listening to Audiomachine (movie trailer music) and it lifts my mood more than anything else I’ve come across. That and writing has kept me sane over the heat of Summer, so it should do the same for those who struggle through Winter!
How interesting, Lisa! And see, I couldn’t imagine summer being the season that I struggled with because the sunshine and long days just does miracles for me and my body. Thank you for sharing and reminding us that SAD does hit the other seasons, too, and I’m glad to hear that you find the same strategies helpful. It looks like Audiomachine is building a new website at the moment, but I found samples here, for curious listeners: http://www.last.fm/music/Audiomachine.
Great article and so informative!
Thank you, Mary, as always!
Walk outside, even if it is cold. It can change your relationship to winter! xo
Yes, good one, Jodi!
Thanks for this post, Laura – I do so enjoy the way you write. I’ve probably mentioned it before, but to keep going in my household we need Frasier. We have the whole lot on DVD, and what makes it great to use is the episode length: 23 minutes. One episode has enough laughs to get rid of a whole day of stress.
Thank you, Chris! And it’s great to have a fall-back show that your whole family can watch. Frasier was even set in Seattle, as I’m sure you know. I borrowed the first season of Modern Family from a friend a couple of winters ago and laughed out loud more than I have with any other sitcom, I think. The only problem was that I’d never watch just one episode and move on… three shows would go by before I’d tear myself away. But it felt good!
I know Carmen does light therapy. As for me, the right music and a good stroll with the dog usually does the trick. As for the chance to “feast upon the liquid gold” you mention above, it’s so true that food impacts how we function mentally. One of the worst things about teaching would be an after lunch class full of boys who ate a bag of Doritos and a Red Bull day after day as their midday meal….
Oh nooooo, Doritos and Red Bull? That’s terrible! I like your idea of dog walks. My inclination is to cocoon/hibernate, but it’s not like I don’t have warm clothes and coo, brisk air is always good for knocking the cobwebs out. Thanks for reading, Jeri. p.s. I got my blue light box on eBay, so it was really inexpensive (it has to be plugged in, the battery doesn’t hold a charge) and that made it easier for me to take a chance on trying it out.
Great suggestions, Laura, especially since I share your geography. Diet is so important–we really are what we eat. I’d add dark chocolate to the list of mood enhancers. My mood goes up anyway whenever I can have even a small bite of the decadent treat.
Katrina and the Waves “Walking on Sunshine” always makes me dance around the computer, as does David Bowie’s “Let’s Dance.” I’m playing it now. 🙂
Yes, two very good songs, and I’m pretty sure I’ve got them both in iTunes so they’ll go on my Anthems playlist! And you will never hear me say no to dark chocolate. Have you tried the dark chocolate-covered edamame from Trader Joe’s? Yummmm.
I love Christmas but winter can be depressing after the holidays. A book that keeps me smiling just now is Traveling Sprinkler by Nicholson Baker. He apparently writes very sexy books, but I’ve only read The Anthologist and this one, the sequel. They are not smutty in the least but quietly quirkily humorous. The way this guy uses words–he’s fearless and original. And funny.
I’m so glad you mentioned books because I was given a copy of Jessica Holmes’s “I Love Your Laugh” just this last weekend and was thinking there are so many funny authors out there that I should reorganize my Goodreads queue, too. I’m not familiar with Nicholson Baker but when I looked up The Anthologist on Goodreads, your review was right there at the top!
I know you like Tears for Fears. When I hear their song “Call Me Mellow” I think “happiest song in the world”. It’s off the album they released a few years ago. Another song that I recently downloaded, that makes me want to dance, is Joe Jackson’s “I’m the Man”. Let me know if these fill the bill for you.
Ooooh, I like that TFF song. I’m sure Francis has it in his 15,000 song library, but I can’t seem to get sharing to work ever since I got a new laptop and iTunes has done some updates. I might have to go the old-fashioned route and put it on a pen drive (that’s so 2010). Joe Jackson… meh. But, hey, dance away, girlfriend! 🙂