A guide to managing low mood in winter

Or a list of all the winter things you’re looking forward to – like eating winter comfort food, or wearing cosier clothes.  

One of the Five Ways to Wellbeing. You could do this by going for a mindful walk, and observing how winter changes the trees, grass, and sky, or otherwise spending more time in nature (a proven way to boost our wellbeing).

Such as through organising a ‘midwinter Christmas’ dinner, or a Matariki celebration with friends or whānau.

By practising relaxing activities such as mindfulness, yoga, or taking hot baths or showers to wind down before bed.

By using the Te Whare Tapa Whā or Five Ways to Wellbeing models as a template. These two models both explain wellbeing through five parts that make up a whole. By creating a plan based on them, you could reflect on what lifts your wellbeing in each of their five areas, including what you’re already doing well, and what you think you might need more support with during winter.  

If you know winter can feel particularly hard for you. If you tend to feel isolated in winter, you could make plans well in advance and ask friends to actively check in on you. If you find it hard to cook for yourself in winter, you could batch cook some meals for the freezer, or ask a loved one if they can help you to organise food for yourself. You can share your proactive wellbeing plan with trusted people in your life, too, if you feel comfortable to.

You can still spend time outdoors (like going for a walk in rain gear, or even embracing the rain!) and spend time socialising (by planning winter-friendly catch-ups like having a movie marathon at home). You can also adjust parts of your routine to reflect winter - for example, by changing your sleep schedule to get the most light you can in the morning, or taking up a new indoors hobby you can practise at home.  

While it’s helpful to spend as much time outside as possible to soak up light and nature’s blues and greens, a light therapy lamp can also mimic sunlight during the darker months and can be just effective for your brain as exposure to actual sunlight. Try to spend 30 minutes in front of the lamp each day, with at least part of that time being first thing in the morning.  

Eating nutritious foods and being active are known ways to care for our holistic wellbeing. Any physical activity during winter – from chair yoga to running – can help protect your wellbeing overall. It’s also helpful to get your annual flu vaccine and do what you can to avoid contact with colds, flu and COVID. For more guidance on how to start physical movement, see our guide.  

Although winter can feel like a good time to ‘hibernate’ or be by yourself, research shows it’s still helpful to be connected to friends and whānau - even if only by phone or video call. Our research into the impacts of Cyclone Gabrielle on New Zealanders’ mental wellbeing revealed a clear theme: community is the key to getting through tough times. For more ideas on how to connect with your community, see our guide.

If you’re still having a hard time or feeling concerned about your mental health, talk to someone you trust. Support is available.
See https://mentalhealth.org.nz/help for further details.