Thread for anyone struggling at the thought of long dark evenings #hotchocandhyggetypesnotyourthread

[Hobnobswantshernameback]

I hate the long dark evenings.
I know they are inevitable.
But every year is worse. Think it's also coupled to menopause symptoms where my general mood and anxiety levels are dreadful.
During the working week November to T he end of February I barely see daylight.
I try and get as much as I can but it's tricky to get outside during the working day
i take vitamin D. I exercise as much as I can.
I do try and embrace the seasons. But I just feel really daunted this year by the thought of it being dark so early
anyone want to commiserate or share any coping strategies
And no I don't want to snuggle under a blankie with a hot choc
just in case anyone thinks that's what I need 😂

Had such a good day out in the garden, but it getting dark at 4 and now pitch dark made me want to cry tbh. Can't wait for these ridiculously short days to be over. Now going to sit under my SAD light, like a moth 😂

So I'm trying to do the following

1. daily vitamin D
2. walk briskly to and from work
3. gym or home workout 2-3 times a week
4. get out in the sun/light as much as I am able
5. plan and book a February holiday

also trying to be a bit kind to myself but this isn't easy but at least doing the above is giving me something to focus on

I mean I love hot chocolate but I cannot stand the dark nights!! The cold, the rain, the mud! I do love Christmas though so that is good but after that I'm on a countdown to spring!!

Totally with you. I don’t really like Christmas but I do use it as a marker for the darkest day being over. Two things help me. Checking the sunset times each day and seeing it go out by just a couple of minutes. And watching for the flowers - first the snowdrops, then a few little leaves coming back, then the daffs and then the tulips, and we’re home.

Having a really bad day today because my periods have arrived, plus it has been super dank and gloomy all day.

I have a bunch of supposedly fun social activities this week and I cba to do any of them. I also have a Dec break booked but I am not even looking forward to that.

Just want to hibernate in my bed. CBA to cook dinner either. Everyone can have beans on toast! I need a kick up the backside, I think.

Same here @Lentilweaver (not the period though, thankfully!). I took the dog out for a good walk this morning - managed a little bit later as I didn't have to start wfh until 8.30 which meant I could grab some daylight. Felt marginally better but the tiredness and feelings of cba is absolutely killing me - I'm ashamed to say I dozed off during a webinar, something I've never, ever done before in my many years of working. I hate this feeling of living underground, it's really getting to me - I'm doing all the right things, but cannot summon the love for winter at all, it's to be endured and nothing more.

Countdown to the solstice begins on Thursday - thank goodness.

Hello 👋🏻

I was on the thread last year. No fairy lights will be suggested here!

Things that have helped me are basically my morning routine -

Get up and walk dog. I know it's dark but I swear the fresh air helps.

When I get back -
Spatone iron supplement in orange juice
Vitamin b12 spray
Vitamin D tablet
Egg on toast with marmite.

If I don't do these things then my day tends to be shit!

Oh and I have a SAD lamp next to my laptop. Always on when I'm working.

Oh and one thing I have noticed for the dog owners. I used to have a collie who'd run off lead and get wet, muddy fur.

I now have greyhounds who walk quietly on lead with a coat on.

I'm obviously not suggesting people trade their dogs, just that wet muddy dogs make a hard morning much worse.

I’ve had an unexpected boost today. New glasses! It’s like a light has been switched on. Hadn’t realised things had deteriorated in the two year gap between checks. Have also booked a hearing test, as I suspect they may be deteriorating and contributing to a general feeling of disconnection/gloom.
Sun is shining and a session of dead heading violas has been a godsend. Roll in daffodils, snowdrops and crocuses.

I got mine an Equafleece - absolutely brilliant for keeping the mud and water off. I’ve been able to walk him down by the river in the daylight yesterday and today and it wasn’t raining - what a difference! And he came back to me when called - we are making (slow) progress!

Oh yes I have heard people love the equafleece.

Good to hear some minor wins in the fight against winter!

Urgh I'm struggling. My HRT is all over the place which is not helping, and I am hoping that the swtich to a gel rather than a patch that the expert has recommended will improve how I am feeling. I am just struggling to find enthusiasm for anything at the moment.

I'm watching Benidorm on Netflix which is cheering me up a bit! Death in Paradise is another good winter watch

I'm sick of the early darkness. Hate fog and drizzle. Hate that I need to go out and cba. I've walked a couple of hours in daylight today but still feeling so meh.

Grey and cold here
desperate for some sun and brightness but at least the rain has gone
Christmas trees to be bought and decorated tomorrow and off to a Christmas fair
managing to keep up with regular exercise whilst the energy levels arE not too bad
feel like I'm inching towards the shortest day
glad of this thread so I don't feel alone in my plodding

It is dry here, not sunny, but bright. We are going out for a spot of geocaching and possibly coffee and cake too.

I am afraid I have succumbed to retail therapy to cheer me up. I bought some chunky knits in bright colours that I probably did not need. One on charity shop but rest in John Lewis and M and S:(

You absolutely did need them! Enjoy wearing them, anything that brightens up the day a bit at this time of year is worth its weight in gold.

I’m just back from taking the fog out for a walk, and while it’s good to get out in the daylight I cant wait to do it in the warm weather with the trees in leaf and the flowers in bloom. Roll on spring and summer, they can’t come soon enough.

My children are putting up the christmas tree and playing the awful "christmas music" which has been a part of December every year since 1974. I hate Slade, Wizzard, Shaking fucking Stevens and Wham. HATE IT.

I’m just back from taking the fog out for a walk.

:) Freudian slip, @SirChenjins ? I am wearing my bright pink chunky rollneck jumper to go out to dinner with DS and DH, and feeling a bit more cheery. Wearing grey, black and navy in this weather makes me feel even worse somehow.

😂 very probably!!

Enjoy your dinner 😊

I find the same old Christmas songs every year horribly depressing, they're all shite but Slade takes the prize.

I've succumbed to making homemade cocktails 😁 definitely helps, I'm imagining myself drinking them on a sun-kissed beach in 80° heat 🍹

I'm So in bright colours it is practically clown like. But it's dragging now. I have moved to a house with decent heating and double glazing and I am going around opening the windows so I feel Like I'm camping in the late summer! So it's the dark and not the temperature that gets to me most.

That in mind, can I have your SAD lamp recommendations please? My budget is honestly measly. But I have a light on my desk that is just not cutting it!

I really want and need to have a lazy day today, I think I have picked up a bug. So I've spent a couple of hours on the sofa with netflix, but now I feel cross with myself for wasting daylight hours when I have DIY tasks and errands and a dog walk to fit into a tiny window of time before the stupid fucking darkness falls yet-a-bastard-gain.