With shorter days and the seemingly never ending gloominess, it can be tempting to spend the winter months hiding from life under the blankets but this only contributes more to the low feeling the cold season brings along.
So, you ask, how can I combat this temptation?
Well here's a way to prevent the winter blues from getting to you:
Having a stable routine is vital through all aspects of your life so you should try to keep a regular sleep schedule over weekdays and weekends, no matter how appealing a warm bed seems.
This regularity is important to maintain your brain performance, mood, and general health whereas wide variety in sleep and wake up times can cause bad moods and increase the person's chance of experiencing symptoms of depression.
To build on this, having a plan of what to do each day can be helpful in motivating yourself to get your tasks done instead of binge watching tv shows in bed!
A way to do this is by writing to-do lists every morning, prioritising your most important or urgent tasks at the top of the list.
This also gives a sense of accomplishment when you can check something off.
While completing jobs that need to be done is necessary, it is still good to reward yourself for doing so to build associations between positivity and productivity.
However, having a constant routine is important to our mental health all year round and it is equally important to maintain routines into the summer months as repetition can help reduce stress and anxiety.
