This time of year we hear a lot of people say:

They feel depressed…

  • Anxious
  • Just not quite like themselves
  • They feel low
  • They feel unmotivated “ lost my drive” “want to make a change and do not know how” “ I feel stuck and do not know how come”
  • Restless

Old challenges often set in like

  • Troubles sleeping,
  • Feeling like there is not much to look forward to
  • Feeling like you have lost your get and go (loss of energy and motivated)
  • Eating comfort food, drinking more then usual
  • Staying indoors and not going out as much
  • Watch too much TV
  • Loss of sex drive

It helps to start to understand why this is happening as identifying the reasons helps to give you power to make a change.

  • The effect of the weather changing
  • It is darker longer
  • It is harder to get outside
  • Not as much sun loss of Vitamin D
  • We tend to spend more time at home and not as much time socializing
  • It is much harder to get out there and try new things (have adventures!, take risk!)
  • You have experienced a loss and have not had time or help to process those feelings so they come creeping in now that you have some time.
  • We often are so busy over the summer and September that we can often out run our feelings, things slow down, we may feel depressed about some of the past stuff or anxious about upcoming events over the holidays
  • Up coming Holidays: pressure to work things, change things, family issues, time of year that amplifies loneliness
  • Last few months to meet your goals of the year feeling of pressure or you have not measured up. How was 2014 suppose to go?!

Bottom line is we have to work harder to feel good in the fall and winter.

Over the next little while we will be offering some tips on how to feel better during this next season. Sometimes you have to work at feeling good and that is ok.

Laura Bradley
Clinical Director & Counsellor at Steadfast Counselling | Website | + posts

Laura is a Master Therapeutic Counsellor and a Registered Counselling Supervisor (MTC,RCS,#2022) with the Association of Cooperative Counselling Therapists of Canada (ACCT). She is also a Certified Group Facilitator.

View Laura's biography and counselling schedule.