{"id":12796,"date":"2021-10-04T17:50:56","date_gmt":"2021-10-04T17:50:56","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/urbanwellnesscounseling.com\/?p=12796"},"modified":"2021-10-04T17:50:58","modified_gmt":"2021-10-04T17:50:58","slug":"self-care-when-the-seasons-change","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/urbanwellnesscounseling.com\/self-care-when-the-seasons-change\/","title":{"rendered":"Self Care for When the Seasons Change"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Do you ever feel tired when the seasons change?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

There\u2019s actually a lot going on when the seasons start changing\u2013particularly from summer to fall and winter\u2013that has a direct impact on us. But how often do we change our self care habits to reflect the changes happening in the environment around us? And after all, people aren\u2019t machines. We don\u2019t run the same way every day; we need variety!   <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The changing of the seasons, as we said, brings up lots of changes that can impact your daily life directly. These include things like: <\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Lack of sunlight:<\/strong> as the seasons change the days get shorter, which means we get less exposure to sunlight every day. This can impact both your mood and your energy levels; making you feel more fatigued than in sunnier seasons.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Lower temperatures: <\/strong>You know that feeling of wanting to stay in bed and do nothing when it gets cold out? When temperatures lower, that can reduce functions such as sensory feedback,\u00a0 dexterity, blood flow and more. And what that means is that cold temperatures actually DO physically make it hard to get yourself to do anything other than snuggle under your blankets!\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Damp weather: <\/strong>As temperatures drop, so often comes damp weather. When there\u2019s a lot of dampness in the air, that means there’s low atmospheric pressure. When atmospheric pressure is low, there\u2019s an increase of movement in your bodily fluids which causes things like swelling and puts pressure on your nerves, as well as increases the fluids in your joints. What all of that means is when the weather gets damp, people often experience chronic pain flare ups, increased pain levels, stiffness, and reduced mobility.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But what does all of that have to do with mental health and self care?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

At this point, many people are familiar with seasonal affective disorder<\/a>, or seasonal depression. As the months get colder and the days get shorter and darker, people experience an increase in depression symptoms.  But as we can see above, there are a lot of other considerations we need to make in the cold, damp months when it comes to our self care. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

For example, we also now know that pain and emotions are very linked. So not only can the light and cold affect your mood and energy, you may find your mental health needs more intense care and consideration when you\u2019re feeling physically unwell. Because when you\u2019re experiencing long term, on-going pain there are real emotional impacts! Take this quote from the  Augusta Pain Center<\/a>: <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cPain is inextricably linked to emotions. In fact, physical pain and emotional pain exist on almost the same circuitry of the nervous system, with common brain systems involved. For this reason, it\u2019s not surprising that the presence of chronic pain is often associated with emotional changes.\u201d<\/em><\/p><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

And consider what we\u2019ve seen throughout COVID so far; when your brain is in any sort of \u201csurvival mode\u201d that\u2019s using up energy you\u2019re normally able to put toward things you enjoy or that stimulate your brain. You might feel like you\u2019re just tired all of the time, because you\u2019re working so hard at getting to your typical \u201cequilibrium\u201d when the environment around you is making that difficult.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

So what does this mean for our self care?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Increased challenges means what was working before might not work right now\u2013and that\u2019s not a reflection on you. This is a time to be extra gentle with yourself and stop and reflect on how your needs might change as the seasons do. Do you think you\u2019ll need more support? In what ways? Does your body have different needs as the weather and seasons change?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

If you\u2019re unsure where to get started, here are some ideas on ways to tend to yourself and update your self care routine as the seasons change: <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Make time to stretch: <\/em><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Like we said earlier, as it gets colder, our bodies react strongly! To help get your blood flowing and warm yourself up gently, try to start your day with some stretching. You don\u2019t have to do anything intense, just roll out a yoga mat and throw on something warm and focus on your body for a few moments. Did you wake up with any aches? Can you do any stretches to balance those out? <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Anticipate needing more rest & give yourself new ways to do it: <\/em><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Some people dread the seasons changing because they know it\u2019s when their energy levels are going to drop significantly. But resting doesn\u2019t have to just be laying on your couch watching TV\u2013though it can be, if that\u2019s going to bring you joy and refresh you when you need it! But if you dread cold months because you get bored due to fatigue, try to find new ways to give yourself rest\u2013because you will need it! You can do something like getting a massage, or trying a salt float<\/a>. For more regular practices, maybe schedule a nap for the middle of the day if you\u2019re able to\u2013so when you\u2019re done with your responsibilities at the \u201cend\u201d of your day you still have some energy saved up.   <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Adjust how you nourish yourself: <\/em><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Warm beverages are a great way to get some heat running through your body. Pick a favorite and make it a habit to brew it for yourself in the middle of the day or after work! Along with that, we know that carbohydrates temporarily boost serotonin levels, so that\u2019s why you might be craving heartier foods like breads and pastas in the winter! Use that to your advantage, and make a self care routine from your meals. Not only is cooking a big meal a great way to slow down and try some mindfulness skills, and a creative way to nourish yourself, you can also use it as a point of social support. Having a big pasta dinner on a regular basis with friends is a great way to tend to your physical, emotional, and social needs as the weather changes. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

If you\u2019re looking for more support, we can help! Come talk to our counselors<\/a> today for more support. <\/h3>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Do you ever feel tired when the seasons change? There\u2019s actually a lot going on when the seasons start changing\u2013particularly from summer to fall and winter\u2013that has a direct impact on us. But how often do we change our self care habits to reflect the changes happening in the environment around us? And after all, […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":12797,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[80],"tags":[],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nSelf Care for When the Seasons Change - Urban Wellness<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"This is a time to be extra gentle with yourself and stop and reflect on how your self care needs might change as the seasons do.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/urbanwellnesscounseling.com\/self-care-when-the-seasons-change\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Self Care for When the Seasons Change - Urban Wellness\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"This is a time to be extra gentle with yourself and stop and reflect on how your self care needs might change as the seasons do.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/urbanwellnesscounseling.com\/self-care-when-the-seasons-change\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Urban Wellness\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"http:\/\/www.facebook.com\/urbanwellnesscounseling\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2021-10-04T17:50:56+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2021-10-04T17:50:58+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/urbanwellnesscounseling.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/new-maureen-blog-graphic.png\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1120\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"630\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/png\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Urban Wellness\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Urban Wellness\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"5 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/urbanwellnesscounseling.com\/self-care-when-the-seasons-change\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/urbanwellnesscounseling.com\/self-care-when-the-seasons-change\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"Urban Wellness\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/urbanwellnesscounseling.com\/#\/schema\/person\/faba8b77b96d19913820b9d631a28b8c\"},\"headline\":\"Self Care for When the Seasons Change\",\"datePublished\":\"2021-10-04T17:50:56+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2021-10-04T17:50:58+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/urbanwellnesscounseling.com\/self-care-when-the-seasons-change\/\"},\"wordCount\":1071,\"commentCount\":0,\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/urbanwellnesscounseling.com\/#organization\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/urbanwellnesscounseling.com\/self-care-when-the-seasons-change\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/urbanwellnesscounseling.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/new-maureen-blog-graphic.png\",\"articleSection\":[\"self care\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/urbanwellnesscounseling.com\/self-care-when-the-seasons-change\/#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/urbanwellnesscounseling.com\/self-care-when-the-seasons-change\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/urbanwellnesscounseling.com\/self-care-when-the-seasons-change\/\",\"name\":\"Self Care for When the Seasons Change - 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