Totally Dreading Winter

[birling16]

My thinking is I'm OKish menatlly at the moment. Not much in the wellness bank though. I absolutely know mood will deteriorate when the darkness comes.
Have a SAD lamp and know about nutrition and so on. I just find it a slog.

I too think that winter is my least favourite season. This year I'm aiming to spend time in the garden tidying it up for spring.

Look forward to apricity - warmth of the winter sun - usually around beginning of January.

I'm also going to clean and clear on dark winter days.

The clocks go back for only 5 months, which is always good to remember.

I feel similar. Would you and OP consider booking a holiday somewhere to break up the winter? I’ve considered this. Even the Canary Islands. I feel like January is the perfect month to go away, even February. Come the end of Feb / beginning of March and at the first sight of spring, I tend to notice my mood is lifting…

that’s lovely word.

I wouldn't go straight in and say you need church here. Plenty of community without religion.

Search walking groups, some even have women only.

Wild swim groups?

I find having a campfire fills me with joy and I try and do this weekly in winter...also and see sunset or sunrise.

I absolutely ADORE all of your suggestions. I’m going to try some of them myself.

I have a second mattress to go if you want the get the mattress into rubble bags challenge as well! :-)

I personally don’t see much of a difference between winter and other seasons in this respect - we have so many grey and rainy summers now, this year really has been exceptionally good. I remember actually bursting into tears last year (yep, first world problem!) after the summer holidays was just weeks of rain, grey cloud and damp, without any let up at all.

That was your only suggestion that I wasn’t too keen on 😆

Books, hot water bottles, tea, throws but also getting as much fresh air and walks when you can and hopefully it’ll just go on x

I am absolutely dreading it too .I have to have a knee replacement in October on top of it all and know that due to that my movement or freedom to do as I please will be restricted .It is already so dark and cold where I live in Southern Germany Winter has practically already begun!

I live alone and feel like this every year. I work from home (cafés are not an option) and it’s just depressing.

In my mind nothing a very sharp stanley blade and a couple of decent pairs of wire cutters can't conquer!

Sunrise was 7.37am here in the west of Ireland!

Before and after pictures please

Have you got a dog?

@placemats I need to get out in the garden during winter too, plenty of jobs I can still do. Thanks for giving me that thought! I’m off this week, currently drinking tea and waiting for the sun to move round enough to dry the lawn for its final trim this year! I’ve really noticed the shorter cooler days, even though it’s been lovely so far with lots of sunshine. Best stop procrastinating on MN!

That would be wonderful

I love winter evenings, but I hate the gloomy winter days. The grey skies, the meh weather. I love snuggling up in bed with the tv on or a book

Libraries - borrow a few books and aim to read them
Loads of free books online with you prime or kindle subscription

Look online for a free or cheap course to do, something random maybe factor in they will be Christmas gifts so homemade cakes, biscuits, chocs, candles, dreamcatchers. There are loads of ideas on YouTube also to get you going.

Jigsaws, adult colouring books on Temu and put the radio on. I love losing a few hours doing this. It is so relaxing

Pamper night for yourself face mask, foot and hand mask, hair mask ( all on YouTube), hot bath, lots of body lotion and clean sheets on your bed.

Massages and facials, new hair style or colour if you can afford them, if not do a DIY version or see if there are any classes nearby looking for models

Volunteer at a local food bank, second hand shop, meals on wheels, and if you have the inner strength there are always helplines looking for volunteers, samaritans, rape crisis, etc. Look at OLIO and see if there are any food cloud collections local to you to help ppl that don't have a lot

See if there are any free or cheap nights locally, learn to dance, cook, knit

Make two day dinners, a stew, a chilli, spag bol, buy a ready meal x 2.
It just means you aren't tied to the cooker and can spend an evening visiting family or friends or having that pamper night

Have some friends around for dinner, everyone brings a dish of something and a bottle of what they like to drink, make it a surprise dish it could be fun

Join an evening swim, walking group, gym, DIY class

Winter clean your home - pick a room and scrub it, radiators, walls, under the bed, windows, door frames, skirting boards. Pack away your summer clothes

Try on clothes too big, too small, you will never wear again and have a clear out
I try do one room a week like this, but at least by spring time they will all be done

Now is also a good time to start wintering your garden or pots.
An hour or so in the garden despite the weather and grey skies can be very relaxing

How much cash & outdoor space do you have?

Zero.

But thanks for your nice ideas.

Nothing comes to people easy you need to put in time money effort

I am acutely aware that nothing comes easy. Effort? I put in loads. I have spent years and years volunteering, I have set up groups and still run one. I exercise , I try my damnest to be a decent human being. I have put in a shed load of effort to form and maintain friendships, only to be told everybody is busy.

I have no money as my sibling wangled my inheritance.
I have had chronic pain and some level of depression for most of my adult life.

I will try and I will keep on trying.

sorry to hear that

Some time in the sun is good but then you have to come home, perhaps to an English winter.

I can't decide if it's better to enjoy some sun and then deal with the winter or just stay put here and forget that sunny climes exist.

I could have written this. I’m estranged from my only sibling after an inheritance issue and don’t look forward to Christmas.

Winter is often not that good It's what makes the rest of the year such a joy though.

I don't understand all the threads on here with people moaning about the summer.

I wish we could link up.