5 Positive Steps to Help Beat the January Blues
January is definitely the ‘Monday’ of the year. For millions, it’s a tough month, which leads to the onset of the ‘January blues’.
It’s the month after Christmas, the tree has been taken down, and the ‘happy new year’ enthusiasm dwindles as the thought of waiting three months till Spring creeps in. It’s the month we return to normality, back to our often mundane routine.
It’s also not just you or I that find it challenging. Millions are affected by the winter seasons in varying degrees, with the cold, wet weather coupled firmly with a lack of sunshine and shorter days leaving people feeling slightly down.
Yes, this sounds dreary, but there’s another way to look at it. January is a month that gives the gift of time.
It often feels like the slowest month of the year, followed closely by February. I’m going to utilise the perception of time slowing down, and you can, too.
Time to reset, recharge, and relish in a calm routine. Time, after a heavy month of social activities and spending time with people, to have some much-needed space.
So, before summer reaches us, kickstarting our social activities and a non-stop frenzy of good times (I’m looking at you, people going to summer camp), here are 5 tips on how to beat the January blues.
1. Enjoy the benefits of a routine
For some, January is the month used to set goals, try a new activity or introduce a new year’s resolution.
If this is the case for you, you can use an uninterrupted routine to plan your month in a way that allows you to make room for these new activities.
Some studies show it takes an average of 66 days for a new habit or behaviour to become part of your routine. Hence, a quieter few months is a perfect time to literally change your life.
Such a routine doesn’t even need to be focused on activity.
You might also want to take more time to focus on supporting your mental well-being.
You can set aside ten minutes in the evening or another point of the day that works best for you to journal, practice yoga, or even meditate. Each is an excellent way of working through negative feelings you might be having whilst promoting calm in your life.
To keep yourself honest, download a habit tracker. You can input your habits into it daily, seeing where you can improve or where you’re doing great.
Remember, 66 days. Stick with it for that length of time, and you may be surprised how different your life could look.
2. Try a new activity or experiment with life
A lot of people set themselves resolutions for January. Often, they are about restriction.
However, a resolution could involve trying something new instead. Adding to life can end up being far easier than restricting. For example:
64 million artists have a January challenge to create a new piece of art every day. You will receive a daily email with a creative prompt, and your can share your creations via social media.
Urban has challenged people to find the brightness in each day throughout January as the month gradually brings in more daylight. They have a weekly calendar with a daily prompt to help you beat the January blues.
If you don’t have the time to commit to doing something new every day, you could try one new activity weekly in January instead.
Pick a boring day (I’m feeling a Monday or a Tuesday) and transform it into a day/evening of exploration. Try rock climbing, see a new film in a cinema, or even try and create a new recipe at home.
There are many ways you can bring a sense of enjoyment and fulfilment to your month; you just have to act on it.
3. Save money
December can be one of the most expensive months of the year for many of us.
As such, people can be left low on money in the New Year, and it’s an added strain to an already tough month. However, you can use it to save any money you have leftover while taking some time away from socialising.
There’s certainly less pressure from friends to do things in January, and saving money now is sensible to get yourself back level and get ahead of things you may have coming up in the summer.
4. Get organised
Whilst people often partake in a spring clean, my favourite time of year to clear out is January.
It can give you a chance to clear your space which can, in turn, clear your head. You can also find room to put any Christmas gifts you received and have no room for.
Instead of throwing items away, consider donating them to a charity. In doing so, you can help reduce waste and the environmental impact of fast fashion by encouraging the reuse of items you no longer need.
5. Plan your summer
Most love summer.
It’s a season of opportunity, where people venture out into the sun, with endless chances presenting themselves.
For students, it’s the obvious time to make plans, as final assignments are submitted, and goodbyes to uni accommodation are made.
For those who took up a new activity in January, as suggested above, this could even become your summer opportunity. Camp in America has a range of summer camp activities that they need passionate staff for.
So if you took the time during the dreary winter months to develop rock climbing, for example, that investment could lead to you having the summer of a lifetime as a climbing instructor in America.
These 5 tips on how to beat the January blues aren’t a magic wand to stop you from feeling sad at the start of the year.
If you struggle heavily during winter, you could suffer from some degree of Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD). As with all mental health issues, it’s important to seek professional advice where required.
However, the above tips on beating the January blues are baby steps guidance. They can help you view this underrated month as a tool for setting the theme for the year ahead, which can be the bedrock for a turn towards a happy, positive year.
My theme this year is peace. Yours can be anything you choose, based on what you feel you need the most out of the year. But plan it, act on it, and look back in the middle of the year to see how far you’ve come.
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