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Got the February blahs? Try these tips to beat winter blues

Even if you don't have seasonal affective disorder, it's hard not to be impacted by the shorter days, longer nights, lack of sunlight and bone-chilling cold

January can be a grey, dark, depressing month. There’s even a term for the feelings it evokes: the January blues.

But what about the February blahs?

Even people who don’t have the condition known as seasonal affective disorder (SAD) can be impacted by shorter days, longer nights, lack of sunlight and bone-chilling cold.

“They can certainly feel some of the symptoms,” said Jolene Heida, therapist with Jolene Heida & Associates. “Winter is historically the busiest time to seek support.”

Most affected are children, youth, and women, Heida said. “And if you already have an underlying medical condition”, from mental health issues, to injuries from an accident, “the winter tends to be the time the symptoms are exacerbated.”

That may be one reason for the tradition of the New Year’s resolution. It’s not only about wiping the slate clean and starting afresh. Resolutions can lead people to try new activities, and learn new routines — something that studies have shown can help beat depression and the blues.

“Voluntary physical activity,” such as walking, running, swimming, dancing, or exercising — even if only 35 minutes a day, three to five days a week — has been shown to have a positive impact on mental health.

In fact, reported Psychology Today, a Texas study found that “as little as three hours of regular exercise a week reduces the symptoms of mild to moderate depression as effectively as Prozac and other antidepressants” — with no harmful side-effects and plenty of health benefits.

Stephanie Uren, fitness supervisor at the Bradford West Gwillimbury Leisure Centre, couldn’t agree more, and offered a number of tips to help fight the winter blues and blahs.

First, find a workout buddy, she said. Working out with a friend not only increases motivation and commitment, it makes exercise more fun. Then, set goals —  but keep them doable and low-key, at least initially.

Do things you enjoy, either indoors or outdoors, like walking, skating, snowshoeing, but don’t be afraid to try something new. Then there are special events, including marathons and extreme sports.

If you need more inspiration, sign up for a one-hour coaching session with a fitness coach who will provide an individualized program based on your goals.

Psychology Today also identified “alternative and complementary therapies” to treat depression, looking at alternatives from “pro-hormone” treatment with DHEA (dehydroepiandrosterone), an anti-inflammatory and anti-oxidant that plays a role in mood regulation, to light therapy.

Exposure to strong light for 30 minutes can be enough to counteract the impact of SAD, which is one reason why the BWG Public Library installed a light box, lamp and manual in one corner of the magazine room on the first floor.

Diet also has an impact on depression, Psychology Today found, noting that consumption of Omega-3 fatty acids, as found in fish oil and flaxseed, can help beat the blues, while sugar has the opposite effect: the initial sugar “high” is followed by a low.

Nancy Young, of Nancy’s Nifty Nook, is often asked for natural ways to beat the blues — and she practises what she preaches.

The first thing, she said, is good gut health. “If your gut doesn’t feel good, your body will not feel well.”

It goes beyond a good probiotic — “Kombucha is a natural probiotic, and delicious!” she said — to the need for vitamins C and D3.

“Approximately 85 per cent of Canadians are vitamin D deficient,” a product of Canada’s northern location, short days, and low level of sun exposure in winter, Young said. “It’s necessary for good mental health, good heart health, bone health and breast health. We all should do vitamin C; we all should do vitamin D.”

She also carries a number of herbal remedies she has found helpful in dealing with stress — from Bach’s Flower Remedies for anxiety, to Bell’s Calming Chronic Stress, camomile tea, Indian ginseng (Ashwagandha), and “St. John’s wort — the sunshine herb, great for depression, as long as you are not on medication for depression.”

Recognizing when you are feeling blue is a first step, said Heida. Adults generally know when they are feeling “down” or depressed but kids might not.

For them, depression, anxiety and stress can manifest in other ways, from sleep disturbances, to fatigue and lethargy, inability to get out of bed, complaints of headache and stomach aches, Heida said.

And she agreed there are many ways to deal with the blues, from good nutrition, to healthy activity.

The only “solution” that doesn’t work is the one that often comes to mind in the depths of winter: “When people aren’t feeling well, they tend to isolate or hibernate,” Heida said. “That’s the worst thing they can do.”

Instead, she said, it’s important to “engage in self-care, engage in community. Depression breeds in isolation, but it heals in community.”

Take a class, go swimming with the kids, get out and get doing.

“It’s hard, but it feels so good. We’re not meant to be isolated. We’re meant to be connected to one another.”


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Miriam King

About the Author: Miriam King

Miriam King is a journalist and photographer with Bradford Today, covering news and events in Bradford West Gwillimbury and Innisfil.
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