Hello All
My name is Hannah Hudd and I am a Bodywork Coach and Self-Care Practitioner here at the Accuro Clinic in Hythe.
I am a mother and entrepreneur with a passion for seeing others glow and thrive. As these colder months are upon us, Chris and Heather thought it’d be a great idea to bring you a blog about Winter Wellness!
As we all too well know, the days are shorter with gloomy mornings and darker evenings. The festive cheer has long passed, we are watching not only our pennies, but our weight.
Winter is not always a happy time for some and I come across many patients that feel like they want to go into ‘hibernation mode’. With the grey, chilly weather, you might not be feeling your best. The ‘winter blues’ is a real thing – Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD) affects around 2 million people in the UK and it’s characterised by feeling more down, sad, or just less energised than usual. So, how can you get rid of that ‘blah’ feeling and banish those winter blues?
What are the symptoms of SAD and ‘winter blues?’
If you have SAD, this is a form of clinical depression that reoccurs around the same time each year. You might experience:
• Feelings of hopelessness and despair
• Fatigue
• Lethargy
• Sleeping problems
• Trouble concentrating
• Changes in appetite
There is plenty of useful advice via the MIND website on SAD. This is not intended for use for people with a diagnosis of depression. If you feel depressed to the extent that you have any feelings of self-harm, it interferes with your sleep, your appetite, your relationships or your work, please contact your GP for further advice. Most people who are depressed improve with help.
How to banish the winter blues
Don’t let winter get you down… If you don’t have the luxury of hibernating in your bed for the next 4 months (wishful thinking), there are some simple ways you can lift your mood. Here’s top five tips that you can do today…
Keep active
Whilst curling up on the couch in winter is oh so appealing, it’s important to remember to keep as active as you can to combat the winter blues. Regular exercise aids positivity and
feeling like you’re achieving something good for yourself. Exercising also releases your happy hormone - serotonin - so not only is it good for your health, it makes you feel good too!
Check if you’re doing enough by taking the Fitness and Activity Check in the Fitness section of the Evergreen Life app.
Keep in touch
Keep in touch with your friends and family over the winter period! Staying in touch helps you stay more connected to the world and feel less isolated. If your family live far away or you
cannot see people face-to-face due to other reasons, you could consider video chat, so you can see them as well as hear them? These days we rely on instant messages for
communication but it’s good for us to have more human interactions to improve our wellbeing. If you’re involved in a loved one’s care, this is a useful resource.
Eat healthily
It’s easy to turn to comfort food when it’s cold or you’re not feeling at your best, but make sure that you’re not just mindlessly eating your way through that box of chocs or share bag of crisps. Try and be more conscious about your eating habits in the winter months. Making sure you’re getting your five-a-day is a good place to start so you can try to get the right
nutrients to keep your energy and immune system boosted. The British Heart Foundation (BHF) has some great tips for healthy eating this winter.
See the light
There’s not much sunlight around at this time of year, so it’s important to get our vitamin D from other sources like diet and supplements. Fatty fish including tuna, mackerel and salmon
are great choices, as well as fortified dairy products. Even when eating the right foods, it can be difficult to get enough vitamin D in the winter, so taking vitamin D supplements is a good
idea. Vitamin D also helps encourage the production of serotonin so you can help boost that happy hormone. A Himalayan Salt Lamp is another tool you could use. They do more than light up a room and your mood. They can actually aid sleep, ease allergies, help people with asthma to breather better and clean the air, amongst other benefits. Buy a Salt Lamp by the end of February for 10% off. Just quote #Newsletter
Stick on something upbeat
Turn over the slow ballads! Research has shown that listening (and dancing!) to some cheerful, upbeat music can improve your mood – even after the song ends. The same can also be said for films and TV shows – putting your favourite feel-good comedy or rom com could help you laugh away those seasonal blues.
So, what are my top tips for staying happy and healthy this winter?
1. Guided Meditation: How do you like to relax? Perhaps reading, swimming, TV or walks? Have you thought about taking 10 minutes out for mindfulness? Check out Daily Calm | 10 Minute Mindfulness Meditation.
2. Stay Hydrated: Drinking water is one of the key components of practicing good self-care. Water is an essential element needed for your body and brain to achieve a healthy and happy you! Self-care is about taking the right steps to improve your overall well-being. Check out this NHS site on hydration and selecting healthy drinks.
3. Are you sitting too long? Whether working from home or in the office, we all have the tendency to sit too long when we get engrossed in meetings and other work. Why not try these simple desk exercises to help.
So, to sign off – stay happy and healthy this winter and we hope to welcome you to the clinic soon.
All the best, Hannah