Over the last few years, I have noticed that I get sad around the holidays, which is new for me. Last year was particularly difficult. So I started small by working out for 5-10 minutes a day, gradually increasing my time when I felt able.
Throughout this year I have taken the same approach and applied it to drawing, reading, and playing guitar. It gently gets me out of a state of rotting or being deep in negative feelings.
For me, intentionally choosing activities that will fuel me has helped. Since depression can make doing anything feel so difficult, I try not to put pressure on myself to achieve any specific goals with said activities.
I hope this made sense & I hope you feel better soon!
Oct 20, 2024
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Winter is a time for forgiveness, acceptance, patience, and attention. Your body is telling you that is time to slow down so we have to figure out how to honor that without falling into stagnation or forgetting the agency we have. To me, the transition into winter feels like when you stop jogging and suddenly you feel all the aches in your body. Summer is for running and winter is for stretching. I think the natural reaction to this deceleration is to act in opposition to fight or neutralize it. Do what you can to be in harmony with it (wu wei). To accept a lull as a lull and to forgive your lows on those dull blue blah days. As a kid, did you ever stare into the darkness and when a little time passed and your eyes slowly adjusted you were able to make out objects and shapes? Things will take form in time.
Recommendations to fully lean into winter:
-Gia Margaret's discography
-discipline; routine will save you
-walking walking walking (find new areas or neighborhoods to explore)
-Rilke
-birdwatching (or reading about birds or people who are drawn to birds as a way to cope with grief. See: H is for Hawk by Helen Macdonald, Birds Art Life… winter is about death after all)
-seek out the company of others (I ❣️ joe_m_miller’s weekly soup night idea)
-Lynda Barry’s daily journal exercises and/or Artist’s Way
-Stardew Valley
-gentle daily exercise (yoga, qigong, strength training)
-The Moths by Mary Oliver
-form rituals... doesn't need to be anything extravagant or spiritual. the thing that got me out of bed last winter is my breakfast and tea routine
-Prefab Sprout’s I Trawl the Megahertz
-puzzles and a show from the early 00’s
-I’m Going Back to Minnesota Where Sadness Makes Sense by Danez Smith
-Purple Mountains
-create daily or weekly itineraries that includes the silliest details (incorporate little joys)
Oct 21, 2024
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The last few months have been hectic in all sorts of ways, and I’ve definitely lost track in my New Year’s resolutions that I promised myself to keep at due to my poor mental health. Instead of getting further down in the dumps about it, I’ve decided to make sure that I’m spending my days off doing things that make me happy so that I feel motivated to get back on track again. Indulging in my hobbies, visiting with friends, cooking delicious meals… All that stuff that’s good for the soul is what I’m focusing on right now. The past few months have sucked, but that doesn’t mean the rest of the year has to!
20h ago
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Obviously we’re all so different, but that also means it’s hard to give advice because how we process stress / how it manifests physically / how we soothe it can vary so much from person to person, and even season to season. I’ve learned to take advice and TRY EVERYTHING until I find what works for me. In my experience it’s better to try 10 different things to weed out what works for you than to pick & choose what you think will work. Just try whatever is feasible from what we recommend!
Okay, rec time:
Microdose gummies were a huge help for me in certain seasons. I am not a person that wants to get high; I don’t have anything against it, just don’t do it myself. The microdose is so so so low that you don’t feel it. If anything, the ones I took felt like a light melatonin feeling. Helped me calm down a lot and often helped me sleep.
Baths were huge in certain seasons. Add some salt, dim the lights, play some ambient sounds or your fav calm album, and fully submerge into the void.
Long drives are how I make sense of life‘s puzzles. I often take the long way home if I think the extra time will help me arrive at a calmer state. I always find myself enjoying the local traffic, getting to really look at my surroundings, using red lights to breathe and refocus my thoughts.
3 practical things that are relatively easy to do. I think anxiety / stress rob you of your time and energy. I’ve spent so much of my life under stress only to get through the very thing that stressed me and realize that I had nothing to worry about. I lost days, weeks, maybe months to stress and anxiousness. At this point in my life I’m very aggressive about not living life with stress or anxiety in the drivers seat. It’s my life to enjoy and I only get one and I want as much of it as possible to be filled with joy / happiness / peace. Hope that helps! Sending you good thoughts + prayers + vibes.
Apr 10, 2024
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Mar 17, 2025
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I’m currently in the back seat of my friend’s car listening to their future plans. It’s lowkey terrifying me. However….take this as your sign that you don’t have to know what you want. You’re not alone!!!
Jun 28, 2025
Apr 20, 2025