This is definitely a different sort of post. Not very festive, but still something I believe a lot of people may find beneficial. Let’s get to it

First off, you don’t. You will want to curl up under a blanket like a burrito for 5 days straight, sans a bra, sans a shower, with your door closed to the entire outer world.

You typically can’t get away with this during anytime of the year, let alone during the busiest time of the year. With trying to see all of your friends and family home for the holidays, buying last-minute gifts, and countless Christmas parties, there is no time to have a bad mental day… or 5.

Since you can’t technically ‘beat’ seasonal depression, here are a few ways to kickstart you from your funk and get you to see the people you love and do the things you love while you can.

1. Take a shower: Something I never want to do when I’m depressed is shower. If you strip yourself of your clothes, let the warm water cascade down your body, smelling the scent of your soap and shampoo, you can remember that you can in fact, feel things.
2. Think of all the good things the winter season brings: Hot chocolate, sledding, candy canes, snowball fights, and movie night-ins would not be as fun in June as they are right now.
3. Buy some fun winter clothes: Not only is retail therapy my favorite thing to do in order to boost my mood, but adding color to your everyday wardrobe is sure to brighten up your life and mood.
4. Workout: In the wise words of Elle Woods: “Exercise gives you endorphins. Endorphins make you happy. Happy people just don’t shoot their husbands, they just don’t.”
5. Try something new: Dye your hair, paint your nails, get a piercing of a tattoo. Do something different with your life. This change will bring a new aspect to your life that not only you will love, but you’ll be sure to receive loads of compliments from friends and family.
6. Get outside: One reason we seem to get depressed in the winter is we lock ourselves up in our houses because of the cold. We never want to leave the house in fear of getting pneumonia. Just hopping out of the house for a few minutes everyday gets you some much-needed Vitamin D and the Sun shining down just makes everyone happy.
7. Journal: Writing down feelings is a good way to get them off your chest and out of your mind.
8. Get adequate nutrition: During the winter especially with all the holiday family dinners and friend brunches, we forget to get the proper nutrition. Don’t forget to drink plenty of water, eat your veggies and you will without a doubt be happier.
9. Add color to your life: Besides your colorful clothes, decorating your house with bright and cheery colors because when you see gray outside but bright colors everywhere else, your mood may boost.
10. Listen to cheery music: Upbeat music always gets my mood boosted. Whenever I can feel my depression coming on, I listen to a pump up playlist to beat that feeling.

Never forget that you have people who love and care about you and that they will be devastated if you miss out on seeing them while you are home.

Alicia