29 Oct 20

Hoping to help beat the winter blues

Here is the UK it’s been rain all week and that combined with spending half term in doors without the usual outlets for entertainment means that glum feeling is creeping in! Aren’t we all missing summer!

I can feel the winter blues taking hold as I wish for another minute in bed in the morning or cannot wait for my son to fall asleep at 8 so I can go to bed myself! I’m aware that I’ve got hiding under the duvet feeling of retreat seeping in and I recognise that I need to nip it in the bud!

So, I’m taking action, and I’m hoping that if you feel any way the same way as me, then this will give you a little boost and inspiration.

Swimming in the ice cold sea in Brighton with my girlfriends is life affirming stuff!

First up I’m diving into the WHM. I’ve known about Wim Hof and the life affirming power of cold-water therapy but at this time of year of year it feels SO WRONG! But a recent episode of Fearne Cottons podcast Happy Place, has really ignited me. She interviews Wim Hof and his strive to help people feel ‘Happy, Healthy and Strong’. It really called out to me as I love how it sounds so simple. As a result of the podcast I’ve been taking a cold shower every day for the past 10 days and it has been absolutely transformational. It gives me a boost of the feel-good vibes, energises me and lifts my mood for the day ahead. Its actual voodoo and it works! I’ve even got my husband and my Mum in on the cold shower action.

The Beach Box Spa in Brighton is a super cool place to hang out all year round

My father in law suffers from bouts of depression and has been standing under the garden hose every day all year round. I just thought he was eccentric, but I can now fully understand what he has been up to and the incredible benefits to his mental state of mind. I have an old bath that we have just pulled out of storage and I’m going to find it a spot in the garden, so I can fill it with lovely ice-cold water for the ultimate plunge! If this is something you have tried, from sea swimming to wild water swimming, I’d love to hear know more. I’ve taken a few trips into Brighton, but the sea is getting rougher now so on the search for calmer waters. The Beach Box Spa is the best of both worlds as you can hang out getting hot, and then plunge into either the cold sea of their plunge pool! It’s such a cool design with fre pits, horse boxes that have been converted into wood fired sauna’s, cold showers and natural beauty treatments. I’m making it a promise to go once a month!

A moon lit plunge in the pool

My mood boosting mission has also involved getting the house in order and having a monumental house sort out. I feel having a thorough re-organise and clutter clearance is best done at least twice a year and it seems to fall energetically in line with Spring and Autumn, probably because the change in season makes us want to pack away unseasonal clothes and get everything ship shape.

I absolutely hate having a sort out- I find it so uncomfortable. The energy it takes me to filter through everything, assessing what to keep and what to pass on is such an energy drain, every bone in my body resists it! And then there is the sorting, piling, bagging up and taking things to the charity shop or organising to sell them online. It’s so time consuming! But oh-so worth it! There is always the motivation at the back of my mind that the items I choose to pass on will be useful to someone else. I use a mixture of charity shops and facebook market place and Ebay to distribute all my unwanted stuff. Facebook market place is great as I advertise it for free and it gets it gone in a jiffy!

Once you have your drawers neat and orderly and have made room in the cupboards once more for things to be stored tidily, then all is well in the world! Sitting back and admiring your well organised closet or stylish shelves is just pure pleasure!

Another mood boosting hack has been continuing with my weekly weight training online with Team Yo and I’ve found this an amazing way to keep my anxiety at bay. I’ve never been a natural match for cardio and so the methodical way of weight training is almost like a meditation and I love how it makes my body feel! Trying to keep up with hitting 10K steps a day is the second part of keeping my mind body and soul feel good. This is the biggest challenge as since the weather has turned grim it’s not so easy to get out. But once you do then nature really rewards you! I love the autumn landscape as the leaves on the trees turn to their rich auburns, gold and russets. And if the sun dares to come out the effect is glorious! And therin lies another way to left your spirits- getting out in the fresh air and taking in the glory that is the changing seasons is one of my favourite things to do.

Let me know your mood boosting hacks for staying strong happy and healthy in the comments below. Together we can do this!