Can you become a winter person? Maybe we could try together?

[LoreleiGilmore]

I once read a thread on here about becoming a morning person - it was so useful but annoyingly I can’t find it! It was all about helping yourself through the transition to the day through sensory experiences - so having a fluffy dressing gown/slippers/rug to use as soon as you got up, good smelling coffee, going outside to drink it in the garden to feel the quiet and scent of the morning air. It was lovely but I can’t find it anymore - does anyone remember it?

I want to apply the same logic to try and become a winter person. I find as the days get darker I start to feel really low and unhappy. I miss sunshine, long evenings, iced coffee, eating salads and feeling full, the smell of the air. Wearing a dress and sandles and being ready to go.

I need to safeguard against becoming super depressed, putting on weight and just feeling awful. Does anyone have any tips on how to ease the transition into winter? Here’s what I have so far:

• have a warm candle lit shower as soon as I get back from work with a nice smelling shower gel

*make the house (esp my bedroom) super cosy. Have indulgently brought a linen spray from Zara so bed smells heavenly and want to buy a really thick and heavy wool blanket (where can I get one from that doesn’t cost £££?)

• light nice candles in the evening to feel cosy (go to Aldi/Ikea for budget friendly options?)

• improve winter wardrobe. I hate all the winter layers. So heavy and then suddenly you feel so overheated as soon as you get on a train/into a shop/the office. What should I be wearing?

*skin care - my lips are so dry and skin is getting worse too as drinking less water. What could help? I heard using nipple cream is a good lip balm sub but not finding it amazing tbh.

• think of nice, filling winter meals - stews and soups that are not super carb-y and stodgy. Maybe invest in a slow cooker so dinner is ready to come home to... is this worth it?

*how can I find the motivation to exercise when it’s so bloody dark all the time?

*use the long evenings to start some long series guilt-free. What should we be watching?

*make something lovely to drink and listen to some great podcasts/audiobooks on commute to so that the dark and ice don’t feel so depressing. Any recommendations for a)drinks cup that will stay warm and b)great stuff to listen to?

Any other tips? Is it even possible to become a winter person?

Fantastic thread!
I do actually really like winter for me a key thing is getting your clothing strategy right
dressing for the weather means you can enjoy winter weather in comfort

Personally I think it’s going against everything you want to do in winter... so yes, snuggling up under a blanket and watching tv with snacks and hot chocolate is nice and cozy but too much of it will actually make you more sluggish and depressed! So for me it’s getting outside as much as possible, under decent layers. Keeping up my exercise ( I do Insanity T25 or max 30 as soon as I’ve put ds to bed). Making sure I keep my fruit and vegetable intake up. All things that are completely the opposite to what I want to do!

Also agree with having something to look forward to especially once Christmas is over. Christmas time is so busy, why not try and put off some of the activities and meetings until January? January and February are horrible months!

Also, remember that SAD is an actual thing and if you feel actually depressed see your doctor.

I’ve been taking St John’s Wort since September and my god I feel like a different person! I’ll have to wait and see if it gets me through January and February though...

I'm the opposite, I absolutely love winter and autumn. Unfortunately I live in a country where 'winter' is just mild heat during the day and a chill in the air in the evening. It's definitely not the same!

I recommend getting hold of a copy of Nigel Slaters book The Christmas Chronicles - I read it last winter in +30 degree heat and it made me feel really cosy, Christmassy and full of the joys of a proper winter. It might help you look at the season in a different light.

I also used to find winter walks where you see your steamy breath in front of you and hear the crunch of frosty grass beneath your feet really refreshing. Would come home and then really appreciate a hot coffee and a slice of hot buttery toast to warm me up. Sometimes it is all about the little things.

Thanks Bizzers for that indoor lights website. Just what I've been looking for.
This is a brilliant thread and I feel better for just reading it!

Surely Nature is very beautiful in the winter? I don't like dark days though.

I do love autumn and winter but feel the cold much more now so am also having to work a bit harder at it! And am stuck in more so the mornings can be really tough.

I recommend daylight bulbs overhead and for some desk lamps - some are better than others. We have Ecozone Biobulbs 20w for the ceiling lamps. They are great for dreary mornings and when you need to see to do things! They are in the natural colour range so it does feel like the sun has been switched on, rather than being in an interrogation room! They do kitchen spotlights too and they are on our list.

Also wearing natural fibres. They breathe so help to regulate your temp much better I think and get staticy so easily and ever since we went eco some years ago, and stopped wearing fleeces, acrylics etc, I have never felt better.

I swear by long sleeved cotton tops under everything, all the time!! Warm and cosy next to the skin but not cloying with all that sweaty static.Cotton leggings under jeans for going out. Cotton hoodies and sweatshirts too. Cotton wax jacket or wool coat.

Also plants indoors so that the air can be warm but not stuffy and full of nasties. Peace lillies clean the air, as do some ferns. NASA have a list. Great for when the windows are shut more often. And they brighten up the room with green which to me is calmly energising. We have some indoor roses that are till flowering and is so lovely to look at.

I think getting outside is essential. Embracing the weather and any bright day, and then feeling the difference with the darkness. It is hard when at work but I think being outdoors helps us regulate our circadian rhythm etc even though it does mean getting cold sometimes.but the right clothes can help. And good boots. I agree that too much indoorsness makes you more sluggish and the body just slows down.

Then there's all the lovely snuggly stuff you have all mentioned :) yes to making things, reading and jigsaws with classical or soothing music in the background!

Likewise radio in the morning to get you going. I love a Classic FM waltz or Polka in the mornings! Much better than morning telly!

Fingerless gloves with a mitten section that folds back. They are amazing. Make sure the thumb folds to, or you can DIY it.

My next project is to sew some elastic on to my gloves to put through my coat kid-style, so they are easy to take on and off in shops - but with fingerless mittens you don't have to do that so often.

Gosh, sorry that was long I got overexcited!!!

OMG definetly Vit D tablets! Personally I don’t like bulk and layers and think you have to spend more on good fabrics in Winter. I second building up a collection of coats and assessories. I also like seeing little ones all wrapped up snug.

I love winter! I hibernate as soon as I get in from work. Soup or stew or baked potato for tea. Fluffy pyjamas, dressing gown. Fab!

I also like seeing little ones all wrapped up snug.

Toddlers in wellies and bobble hats. Cutest thing ever!

Re the dry lips, the best thing for me is Elizabeth Arden 8 hour cream - NOT the lip balm version but the original cream. Nothing else seems to work as well! I got a limited edition version once in a little glass pot, and kept the pot when it was empty to wash and refill from the normal tubes as I find that's nicer for applying to lips than getting it from the tube.

I think over the years I have probably tried all the things suggested in this thread. Not worked though, I still hate winter.

I don't find sitting with a blanket round me cosy. I absolutely hate jumpers. I don't really like any clothes with long sleeves as they make me feel too constricted and jumpers just make me feel awful. I also hate scarves, gloves, coats - all the things you need to wear in winter. I do wear a coat but never a scarf, hat or gloves.

Oh I also hate having to wear tights or socks.

I have quite a lot of lamps as hate overhead lights but they don't make me feel cosy just depressed that I have to have a light on.

We did have a real fire but the dust and mess drove me mad.

Ooooh I have found my people. I'm stood typing this in front of my newly purchased SAD lamp (which I thought was going to be a nice small desk lamp but obviously failed to read the dimensions correctly as it is the size of a medium size television - DH has kindly wall-mounted it for me in the hope of making me more bearable over winter). No idea if it's going to work or not.

I do find I have to have something to focus on so last year I signed up for a 5km swim and this year I have another half marathon in March. It makes me run throughout the year rather than succumbing to sitting and eating on the sofa.

We are also very lucky in that we have a wood burner which makes the evenings quite cosy.

I find I like all seasons now and I think it's since I got a dog. I go put every day, rain or shine and appreciate nature at every stage of the year. I see the same tress transition and know that spring will bring new life and freshness next year so autumn and winter is necessary. I've also noticed how the light changes in January as it starts to get lighter.It's only really November and December that get very dark.
So, my advice is to get outside in the day as much as you can and enjoy a bit of what the Danes call Hygge inside.

*same trees transition

Also I luuurrve coats and big scarves, walking boots etc so that I can walk anywhere. I see so many people who get through winter without the correct clothing, running inside etc. I love sitting outside a pub if it's dry and I'm wrapped up at the end of a dog walk. The other thing about getting out for a good walk, cycle or run is that it warms you up. I'm just in from an hour's dog walk across gorgeous autumn coloured fields and my cheeks are rosy. I've put my lamps on, the dog is curled up on her cushion and I've got the radio on about to make dinner for the family. Cosy foods that we've missed all through the warmer months like toad in the hole, goulash, homemade soups, spicy chilli etc.

I’ve just found this thread with people who feel just like us about winter! Lots of tips.

I’ve got out the lamp timers so can make sure it’s automatically light when I come home, hate pulling up to house and it’s dark:-( got the throw out too for sofa to snuggle under :-) keep the ideas coming.
I loved the sunlight bulb suggestion but have lights that have 3 bulbs per pendant so don’t think can use