Are you feeling like those winter blues are dragging on? Why are we (in Canada) still getting snow in April? I really do love snow, especially those big fat, slow falling snowflakes – BUT I AM READY FOR SUMMER. It is spring and it still feels like winter outside.
I know that for many of the students I work with, they are struggling to maintain positive mental health right now. I attribute a lot of it to the weather we are experiencing. People are just ready for a change. For the hope and joy that comes with a warm sunny day.
Today I woke up to a winter wonderland. A world covered in a beautiful white sparkly blanket with big fat snowflakes slowly falling from the sky. Yes, I am one of those weird people that love snow but I also saw beauty in a less physically appealing way and more of a heart warming beauty. I saw community.
***UPDATED – Now includes 30-day challenge below****
If you missed part 1 of this series you can find it HERE
January 1st, the first day of a new year. New beginnings a head. A chance for a fresh start. And the end of all the Christmas and New Year hype. Tomorrow life will return to ‘normal’ or ‘as usual’. As I mentioned in part 1 of this series that January is often a hard month for people. This is why we are going to participate in a 30-day gratitude challenge toward rediscovering happiness together.
January is a dark, blah month for most people. We are having a literal and metaphorical ‘sugar crash’. Our bodies are burnt out from the increase in sugar and carbs, the extra alcohol or eggnog, and exhausted from the many late nights, that December brings. At the same time we also experience an emotional low. We are either coming down from the hype and excitement of Christmas or January magnifies and intensifies our feelings of loneliness and grief. January also has some of the longest, coldest, and darkest days. This is exactly why I chose January to be the month of Rediscovering Happiness in order to encourage a month of mental health, wellness, and healing.
I invite you to join us on this journey of Self-care this Christmas season. If you missed yesterday’s post check it out! 12 Days of Self-Care & Christmas Cheer subscribe and send me a message if you missed it and I will be sure to pass it along.
Christmas can be a beautiful time of year. A time we celebrate family, reflect on ourfaith, shower loved ones with gifts, and indulge in way too much food. I also know that Christmas can be a hard time of year for some. Christmas is emotional when you’ve lost someone you love whether that is through death, distance, or separation. Christmas is heavy when you experience poverty and you can’t live up to society’s expectations of gifts, food, and indulgence. Christmas is disappointing when you’re lonely or your family is full of conflict and unmet expectations. For me the joy of Christmas can also be lost in the hustle and bustle and ‘stuff’ that comes with Christmas holidays. Do you ever feel like the Christmas season is overwhelming? Like Christmas has lost depth and meaning?
Thankfully the themes written above aren’t the end of the story…. There is hope even when any or all of those negative things are present. The beautiful thing about the true meaning of Christmas is that it comes from within. JOY, HOPE, & LOVE are not based on our external worlds. They are a part of who we are as humanity and need to be nurtured and shared.
This Christmas season, I invite you to give yourself a very special, intangible gift – the gift of self-care, and Christmas cheer, bringing back meaning to the holidays.
It is only through taking care of ourselves – our true, inner selves that we can find those things such as joy, hope, and love this Christmas season.
~Extras
As a special gift I am emailing my subscribers a 12 Days of Self-Care and Christmas Cheer advent calendar that I would love to invite you to participate with me in. I also invite you to follow us on Instagram @sarah_mentallyhealthyme so we can share in this journey together!
CALENDAR SNEAK PEEK!
Subscribe to this blog before Dec 12, 2017 at 8pm and you will receive a free 12 days of Christmas self-careadvent calendar by email.
If you are experiencing any of the challenges listed in the first paragraph know that you are not alone and that there are many beautiful ways we can love through the pain! For example: redefine family: if you struggle with your family redefine what family looks like and have a nice Christmas potluck meal with all the people in your life you love. Poverty-ask for help. There are a number of churches and charities around the world this time of year who are willing to help make Christmas happen, just ask. Loss: if you’ve lost a loved one there are some beautiful ways you can remember them through Christmas traditions such as writing down your favourite Christmas memory of them, buying a Christmas ornament that acknowledges that person’s presence in your home at Christmas, making a donation in their honour etc.
Lastly, I am so excited about my January blog series – Rediscovering Happiness, which will involve a 30 day challenge. Subscribe to stay tuned!
**follow us on Instagram @sarah_mentallyhealthyme **
