A long time ago, I surveyed you guys about blog content, what you like, don’t – several people requested a post on how to survive winter:
“I’ve figured out how to physically survive winter (wool, silk, wool, wool, Primaloft) but this winter in DC really hit me hard emotionally. So! How does one emotionally survive winter when one HAAAAAATES cold?”
It’s getting to be the end of winter (fingers crossed), so I thought I’d tackle this. I’ll start by warning you that I am not a positive person when it comes to winter. My struggle with the long season of cold, gloom, and slush is well-documented on this blog, in fact.
I think that there are two kinds of people: people who enjoy (or at least tolerate) cold weather and people who don’t. People who like winter say things like, “Just find something you like to do outside and it makes winter so much better!” or “If it’s going to be cold, we need to have snow! Snow is so pretty.”
I do not say these things because I hate being cold. I even hate snow aside from maybe two snowfalls a year. (Just call me the Grinch of winter.)
So, as someone who also HAAAAAATES cold and finds myself living somewhere with a solid four months of very cold weather, I thought I’d write about my survival tips. (And I’ll take your physical survival tips because goodness knows I don’t have the best winter gear!)
1) Escape.
This has been a long, cold, SUPER SNOWY winter in Ohio. And the only reason I don’t find myself going crazy is because we escaped the tundra for a week in the tropics. I know this isn’t an option for everyone (can’t take time off of work, you’re trying to pay off debt, etc), so even a mini escape to a hotel with a pool might help combat the winter blues. Or a road trip south to find spring.
For our tropical trip, going the first week of February was perfect because I spent January (an atrociously wintery month) working like crazy to be able to leave, so I was distracted. And then I was still on vacation high for February. It was like a winter reset button and I came back ready to handle more winter. I highly recommend. (And if you know my life, you know I’m not rolling in discretionary income! But we just prioritize the vacation because family time + cultural experience + winter coping mechanism.)
2) Embrace the hibernation.
Winter makes me feel a little trapped – the many layers and winter gear, especially with kids. Then the sidewalks are covered in snow, so I can’t go outside. It’s easy to start to feel claustrophobic. But if I view that trapped feeling in a positive light: Winter is a time for coziness. Embrace the things that make winter cozy and stop fighting it. Get yourself some slippers, a warm beverage, a Netflix marathon, and soup for dinner. But don’t embrace hibernation completely in isolation – make sure you still see friends and family, because being social is important for your wellbeing, too. Winter is practically begging for lots of board game and take out nights with your friends.
3) Get yourself a happy light.
Winter is hard for a few reasons – I find the grayness and lack of sunshine depressing. I cannot tell you how wonderful my happy light is. It makes me feel warm and sunny when it’s been cloudy for days. Highly recommend.
4) (Sorry) Get outside.
I know. Being outside is literally the LAST thing we want to do in the winter. The LAST. But even just getting five minutes of fresh air can help. It’s invigorating! (And cold. So go back inside. And enjoy the hibernation.)
5) (Sorry again) Work out.
This can be part of #4 (if you live somewhere that the sidewalks aren’t covered in snow for two months straight, you lucky duck!) or just in your living room or gym. But working out and sweating does wonders for my mood and my ability to cope with stress. Have no time? You have seven minutes, at least.
And that’s how I survive winter in northeast Ohio. I’m not quite at thriving in winter, but these things help.
Now give me your snow boot recommendations, because I need some.
Another survival tip: leave your Christmas tree up til March! Extra light and “green” in the house and when you finally take down Christmas it’s almost spring! It’s like a mind trick that winter didn’t last THAT long.
I’m not a huge fan of winter either. I used to love snowboarding but then I wrecked my knee, so my next favourite winter activity is lying on the couch under a pile of blankets with a good book. I take my hibernating seriously! When I do venture outside, I love my Sorels – I have the Tremblant snow boots in purple (I think the technical name is “peat moss” but they look purple to me!) and the Winter Carnival boots and my feet stay toasty warm!
Ha! That’s a great hobby to have. :)
something I like to do is go to the gym steam room or sauna and get hot as I can stand for awhile. its good to remember what its like to be hot as opposed to just “not cold” haha
That’s what my sister said, too, when I was talking to her about this post! It’s nice to feel hot sometimes. :)
It’s only been the last couple of years that I’ve started to really love winter, and for me, the big thing was to invest in some outerwear that was actually created for my cold, mountainous winter weather. Boots were my real turning point. Not cute ones from Target, but a pair of fur-lined, unsexy, winter snow boots for tromping and trekking and sledding and snowshoeing, and a pair of real leather, knee-high, flat boots for work. The former was $125 and the latter $250 and I wear one of them almost every day of winter. But, my feet and toes stay warm and dry, and that is a miracle.
I also bought a serious “playing outside in the snow” coat, pants, and gloves that keep me warm and dry, and I bought a nice warm wool coat to wear to work. In winter I wear gloves, a scarf, and a hat every day. And—and honestly, this was a shock to me–being warm and dry made being outside kind of awesome. And being outside enjoying the winter weather made me start to like winter.
So, that’s my advice. If you live somewhere that winter also lives for multiple months; you need to invest in appropriate outdoor attire, and you need to then get outside and enjoy.
xox
Oh man, I need to get that kind of stuff! What boots do you have? I think I’ve been in denial for so long that maybe someday we’ll move somewhere warmer, but now I know we won’t be. At least not for awhile, so it’s time invest!
I keep a list all year of the things I want to do inside during the winter. This year it included making new curtains and throw pillows, re-painting the bathroom, transcribing my handwritten travel journals, watching a list of Oscar-winning movies, etc. That way when I’m trapped inside I have fun things queued up for my hibernation (all of these things are fun for me, believe it or not).
Winter is when I try a new baking recipe every week (and send it with Knight to work so that I’m not tempted to eat it all myself). Our DVR is usually empty because we have caught up on all the things. I tackle organization projects like cleaning out the basement storage area or rearranging the girls room. All very important things, as you can tell. I also relegate myself to our home gym 5-6 times a week and we have to walk outside at least 4x a day for our dog so even if it’s cold, we are out there. Though, a little sun certainly would go a long way during those walks….
FOUR TIMES A DAY? Man, you’re a hero! I didn’t realize dogs required so much work. Maybe I’m too lazy for one….heh. That’s smart to send the baked goods with Knight! I end up eating them all and…not good. ;)
We had a record-breaking winter in Boston this year! Even as April approaches, it still insists on snowing! For me, the key is to get some exercise outside. Winter sports like ice-skating and snow shoeing help a lot, even when it’s cold. Finding ways to enjoy the winter improves my outlook considerably.