To wonder if those who love winter have very robust mental health or very happy lives?

[Comedycook]

So I was thinking about this after reading a thread about weather. Lots of posters saying how they loved winter...some even said they love the dark evenings and what really surprised me was the poster who said they loved dark, cold mornings. I assumed everyone hated these!

Now I'm not in a terrible place mentally and I'm not depressed but I do find the dark, rainy, cold days do affect my mood. When the evenings are warm and light I feel so much happier.

I'm really interested in how others don't feel that the winter brings them down and actually enjoy it. Are they naturally happier, more positive type people?

In some ways I think it's down to being either optimistic or pessimistic. So it's easier to look forward to the 'coziness' of winter and the feeling of getting home into the warmth after being out in the cold. And wintery walks.
I love all the seasons, because I can see the good in them all and wouldn't really want to live full time in a country that didn't have 'proper' seasons like we do.
Winter should be a time when we rest more. When we spend more time indoors, keeping warm when its dark and being connected to our families and letting ourselves slow down (I know this isn't always possible in the modern world of work) So when we say we look forward to winter, we actually mean we are looking forward to the slower pace and rest.
Then in the spring, we are reawakened, like nature. Ready to make the most of being outside more.
The optimistic can see the good things about winter. It must be hard hating the dark and cold, yet living in the UK.

I like winter. I feel
less compelled to be busy like in summer. The children are in a better bedtime routine and I just feel less exhausted as we all seem to settle down for the evening earlier. I do however get outside whenever I can.

Would say I am generally a positive person. OH on the other hand hates it and suffers with SAD but I think he is generally not so positive and is extremely busy during the summer months and he finds it difficult to wind down.

I quite like winter. The times I have had SAD were when I wasn’t feeling happy generally - struggling with infertility, in a job I hated etc. Now I am retired and really happy, I like the dark mornings and the dark evenings and I can enjoy what daylight there is because I’m not stuck in an office all day. And enjoy cosy evenings listening to podcasts or reading.

I love all the seasons for different reasons but yes, winter is fabulous for all the cosy opportunities, wardrobe options and Christmas! I am a glass half full person for sure though.

I hate flat grey days, but I love winter. Clear skies, freezing nights, bright stars, warm fires, good books, dog curled up with/next to/on me.

I love all the seasons and really appreciate the changes.

Yes, I do have an Aga, and open fireplaces, but tbh I don’t go in for tramping through the woods much. I just love the hygge of blankets, cushions, apple crumble and custard. All snuggled up on the sofa together.

I love summer too, am lucky enough to live near the beach and it makes the summer holidays much easier with three young DC.

What I absolutely hate with a passion is the rain. It really does make me miserable.

@Delatron, you know you can ferry your DC around wearing pyjamas, right? I do feel for you though. Glad mine don’t do outdoor winter sports, it must be intolerable.

But lots of people do find winter depressing...it's why seasonal affective disorder is a thing. I'm interested in how some people can actively enjoy something that makes others so miserable?

When look at what people are listing they enjoy, they are talking about what they do.

So, they enjoy fairy lights and socks or whatever. But these are things they do to combat the cold and winter.

Nobody has actually said "yes, I enjoy leaving the office to faceful of sleet that makes my cheekbones hurt and I love sliding around on ice and crashing into Belisha beacons because I've lost control of my car, that's when I know autumn has arrived".

Every single thing that people have talked about on here as being positive are things that they do to stop themselves going doollaly/getting frostbite.

So actually people enjoy the coping mechanisms and rituals associated with being cold.

If they were relentlessly exposed to the elements in the cold, with no cashmere socks, so catch up drinks, no lovely steaming mugs of hot chocolate, they would be unhappy.

FUCKING WASPS.

That is all.

I have SAD so fucking hate late autumn and winter.

Have poor mental health that summer makes worse, I hate bright light, being hot, summer clothes, hayfever etc. I would very happily live in perpetual autumn / winter. I like the dark, I like layers, I just like the vibe!

I hate summer, find any heat truly oppressive. Winter we wrap up and spend it outside as much as possible. Autistic kids much prefer the cold and wild weather too

I'm not really a winter person, I prefer spring and autumn before it gets properly cold and dark. However I do like the slower pace of the winter days where it is quiet and the dark means you have a reason not to get outdoor jobs done but stay inside and do house jobs. I tend to neglect the house in the summer to do stuff outside.

I love all the seasons, there is magic in them all. I don’t live in a beautiful rectory in the Cotswolds but I still love my little flat - in winter I have candles and incense, nice blankets etc. I love the change from one season to another and crisp mornings, my horse’s breath rising when I ride out, Christmas and even the duvet days in bad weather when it’s OK to spend the whole day reading a book have their charm.

I try to live to the seasons, especially with food, but also the season’s energy. Winter is a quiet time and, for me, it’s a time of hunkering down and enjoying comfort.

That’s not to say there aren’t bits I don’t like - freezing mornings don’t always seem beautiful when I have to lift chunks of ice out of my horse’s trough with my bare hands, and the endless mud come January and February is a pain. My house is not always the warmest, much as my fuel bill suggests I’m running a blast furnace.

But, as with so many things, it’s what you make it.

Yes that's a great point

I love the hunkering down feeling in the evenings, the coziness, not having any pressure to go out if I don't want to, no neighbours being noisy in gardens and winter clothes are much nicer and more stylish in my opinion. Also so many festivities in autumn and winter to enjoy

I love winter.

I especially love when it’s raining and getting dark…I tend to wrap up with a torch, grab the dog and go for a lovely long walk where I see nobody at all because everyone else prefers fair weather.

I am an introvert clearly!

I honestly think the purchase of my SAD lamp has changed winters for me.
Without fail, I sit every morning with it fairly close to my face, with all the other lights on for 20-30 minutes. You can do this with your morning cuppa. Give it a few weeks and see how you feel.
I have not had winter depression for at least six years now!

@PinkGrapefruitSorbet I agree. I can't just stay at home watching films and drinking hot chocolate. I have evening and morning commitments to get to and hate it being cold and dark and miserable. Everything is just so much easier when it's warm and daylight. My mood and the kids sleep pattern is starting to unravel now and I don't like it. Roll on summer.

I don't have either robust mental health or a particularly happy life, but winter is my favourite time of year, and is when my mood is at its steadiest and I am my most content. Hate the summer.

I love winter. I love the cold because I can take walks outside without getting too hot. I love grey days, rainy days. Dark evenings. It’s cozy. But I also love sunshine and summer evenings where it stays light outside. I love fall especially. All seasons are wonderful. Now, if there were endless grey days then yes that would affect my mood but generally a grey day is kind of mysterious and lovely. So I guess some people are not as affected. What affects my mood are other people and their moods. That is much more likely to have an impact on me, positive or negative. I enjoy the weather generally, except for when it’s too hot, or dangerous weather.

Thanks I'm definitely going to get one - think they are in the Lidl middle aisle at the minute quite cheap! Like you say giving it a blast with the morning cuppa will hopefully work wonders. Its not so much depression for me, more lack of motivation, which I know is a symptom of depression, but I don't feel sad, just heavily unmotivated!

I think I'd become seriously miserable with four hours of daylight...what is it like to live with it? I'm fascinated...if you don't mind it, do you notice those around you struggle or are they fine with it?

I romanticise winter a lot because I enjoy that cosy feeling- candles, warm blankets, hot chocolate, jumpers etc but the reality is always shit. I like Christmas a lot too but again, the DC always seem to be sick in December so the reality isn’t too great.

I am afraid of the sun due to almost translucently-pale skin that burns immediately* , susceptibility to heat rash and bastard hayfever. Summer is also full of Forced Social Events , which I find difficult as I am antisocial introverted. Yes there is Christmas in the Winter, but for my family it’s one day and then it’s all over.

As a person more podgy than I would like, I also prefer big furry,fluffy winter clothes to hide in.

And finally, I find it easier to exercise when I can walk fast-ish run in the early morning or evening darkness, when no one can really see me.

I am on a very high dose of antidepressants, so it’s definitely nothing to do with being a sunnier person.

I know it’ll already have been said, but I know several people who have taken Vitamin D for SAD and it has had some positive effect.

*Promise I’m not a vampire 🧛🏻‍♀️

I don't think it's about being happy or mentally robust... I've had an extremely difficult year and my MH has suffered, and I'm not in a big jolly family or in a relationship, but I still love winter so I think it's just who I am.

I am an introvert - I like the outdoors, but I also love home, wfh and just love feeling cosy indoors. My DC are similar so we're all happy snuggled up on the sofa or in our rooms when it's rainy or stormy outside. I also just love cosy things. big socks, hot water bottles, hunkering down under duvets with pets lying on you, snuggly PJs, and all that.

However I do agree money comes into it - I can only look forward to winter because I can (just) pay for heating. If I couldn't, that would be grim.

Also agree with a PP that winter is better when it contrasts with a hot summer. It's less fun after a dreary summer, and vice versa, spring and summer are more exciting after a properly dark and cold winter.