| How to Feel Happy During a Cold Winter Dec 25th 2012, 16:00 Have you ever noticed how bad weather seems to drag the spirit down with it? There's nothing you can do about the weather, but there are various things you can do to keep your spirits up until spring. - Find things to enjoy about winter. A snowy, icy, cold, or rainy world can be beautiful and often has sounds and smells all its own. If you're an artist, photographer, or craftsperson, winter provides a great deal of inspiration and different colors to work with. Even if you don't feel that creative, simply watching a winter scene from the comfort of your home can be a pleasant way to relax and enjoy the peace.
There is beauty in winter scenery. - Take part in winter activities. Enjoy skiing, sledding, or ice skating. Visit someplace nearby while the summer crowds are gone.
- If you're a beginner to snow sports, try learning in areas where you won't be worried about more experienced people crowding you out. Local parks and quiet cross country or downhill ski circuits are ideal starting points to encourage you to get out and give new winter sports a go.
- Making snow-men, snow-huts, and snow-lanterns are fun activities for both kids and adults.
- Stay warm. Whether that means sitting by the fire, snuggling up with a loved one or pet, piling on the blankets, or having a warm drink, keep yourself warm. The best way to stay warm all the time is to wear layers of suitable clothes, especially woolen long-johns, undershirts, and sweaters. And don't neglect your feet – woolen socks and slippers are a must-have for keeping you toasty warm all winter.
Wear layers. Furry hoods are optional. - Remember: a significant proportion of body heat is lost through your head - so now is the time to whip out your most fashionable winter hats, berets, earmuffs, headbands, shawls, and other accessories.
- Find something to do besides stew about the weather. This would be a great time to read that book that's been on your list—or even write it. Play cards, clean the house, cook up a big pot of soup, take up a hobby, or knit another warm sweater. It's also a good time to sort photos, computer files, fabric stashes, and anything else that has accumulated over the other months of the year.
- Go to the movies more frequently.
- Visit museums, art galleries, astronomy observatories, food-making facilities (for example, chocolate, cheese, etc.), and while away the cold hours in their heated rooms learning something new.
- Use indoor sports facilities such as rock-climbing walls, squash courts, badminton halls, etc.
- Read How to keep kids entertained in winter for ideas on keeping children happy in winter.
- Brighten up. Winter comes with the shortest days and lowest light of the year. Go out if you can. If you can't, or if you're so far from the equator as to have little or no daylight, use full-spectrum lights, light or white walls, and perhaps some vibrant accent colors.
- Stay active. As much as possible, get yourself outside. Bundle up and take at least a short walk. If the weather does not permit, move around inside. Walk up and down your stairs if you have them. Do a workout tape or use that treadmill or stair machine that is gathering dust. Exercise gets your body temperature up and your blood flowing. It also regulates such things as sleep and diet. Move around at least a bit each day.
- Browse seed catalogs and plan your garden. There's nothing quite as promising as the idea that spring is around the corner. You could even start some plants indoors under artificial light.
- Eat properly. You may tend to eat more in winter, whether because of holidays or because your body craves more energy. Either way, try to keep a balanced diet including whatever fruits and vegetables (dried or canned if necessary) you can. Try not to overdo it on the sugars and starch.
Canned or dried fruits and vegetables can stand in part time if there is not much fresh produce locally. - Choose your carbohydrates wisely. It's natural to crave them during colder months and it's important to consume complex carbohydrates (fruits, vegetables and enriched whole grains) over processed food.[1]
- Maintain your vitamin intake. Vitamin B is important, especially folate, to help stop you feeling the blues; this in foods such as lentils, peas, and spinach.[1]
- Ensure that your intake of foods rich in tryptophan is increased because this is the amino acid required to manufacture serotonin, the neurotransmitter that helps you to feel good. Suitable foods include bananas, poultry, dairy produce, and peas.[1]
- Keep up your intake of omega-3 fatty acids to help fight off the blues, eating such foods as cold-water fish and flaxseed and walnuts.[1]
- Avoid any foods that cause you to feel sluggish, such as highly processed foods, saturated fats, and sugary foods. These can worsen any blues because they cause you to feel lethargic and often result in a crash after the initial energy burst. In addition, be careful with aspartame as it can interfere with serotonin functioning and leave you feeling moodier; if you notice any reactions to it, avoid consuming it.[1]
- Keep in touch. Call friends or make new ones. If you regularly attend club meetings, church, or other activities, try not to interrupt your routine just for bad weather. If transportation is a challenge for you, link up with friends or helpful people who can give you a ride to and from your usual activities.
- Remember that, without winter, no one would appreciate and love the summer so much. People manage to draw a lot of inspiration from winter, including spending more family together and using this as a chance to increase skills that will be useful when the weather warms up. Some people even choose to use winter to celebrate important life events, such as getting married in the snow. Whatever your take on winter, in contrast to our ancestors for many previous centuries, our modern lifestyle helps us to keep warm, travel safely, and continue life with a good amount of comfort during winter seasons, all sound reasons for finding something good about living through the coldest months.
- Remember that winter has its benefits. It may bring needed precipitation to an area. Some plants require a certain amount of cold to grow flowers or fruit the following year.
- Plan a mid-winter trip to get you away from the cold for a week or two. This can lift your spirits dramatically and will make getting through the rest of winter a breeze.
- Be happy that at least it isn't hot: you might be freezing your but off right now, but people on the other side of the world are sweating buckets.
Edit Warnings - If you're suffering badly, you might have seasonal affective disorder (SAD), which affects around half a million people in the United States yearly.[1] Seek advice from your doctor to help you overcome the winter blues.
- Avoid overdoing the alcohol and caffeine through winter. These can cause you to feel tired, which in turn can lead you to feel moodier about the elements and lead to exhaustion.
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