Why are we all so drained in the New Year?
You’ve probably noticed it in conversations with friends, when you see family, or when you’re zooming or working with colleagues – almost everyone is exhausted, tired, and drained.
One of the reasons for this is a lot of people are experiencing Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD). This is when the shorter days and lack of sunshine impact our body’s production of serotonin (happy hormones), leaving us feeling low, lacking motivation, and not enjoying the things we usually would. You can read here 4 of my top tips to address SAD holistically.
Another reason is because we’re still living in a time of uncertainty. The new year is often a period of reflection and all you’ve achieved in the past 12 months, and where you want to be in the next. However, the pandemic has truly changed all those hopes, dreams and plans and so the time reflection we’re all used to can begin to feel sad, hopeless, and difficult. It can therefor be exhausting to try and make plans for the year ahead when you simply don’t know what’s really around the corner.
Finally,
So, what can we do to protect our energy, and feel a little more hopeful, optimistic, and positive about the year ahead?
Set intentions, not goals
Goals are specific and focussed on the future. When we’re living in a time of constant change this can be difficult to put together, whereas intentions are based in the present moment and are lived each day. An intention is a guiding principle for who you want to be and how you want to live. Often this is represented in one word, such as “calm”, “ . Intentions give you something to focus on rather than trying to achieve something super specific, and feel a lot more within our control moving forward. By setting one for yourself for perhaps the next month or year, it will give you something to put your energy into and give you a little bit of power back.
Get out into the sunshine
It might be rare, but whenever that sunshine strikes, make sure you prioritise getting outside and soaking up some rays. Being in the sun naturally triggers the release of serotonin (the happy hormone that we stop producing as much in the winter months), helping boost your mood and help you feel calm and focussed. Wrap up, put a scarf and hat on if it’s particularly chilly, pop some relaxing music on or ring a friend to join you and soak up the goodness that the sunshine has to offer.
Put yourself first
There’s a high chance whatever your holidays might have looked like, you spent a lot of time putting others first. Whether it was children, relatives, friends who wanted to go out, or even just your housemate. The holidays are often a time that we put ourselves and our needs aside for “the greater good of the festive period”, which is why when they’re over we feel a little empty. As we navigate the first month of the year, prioritise putting yourself first. Maybe it’s sitting in bed with a cup of tea. Perhaps it’s rolling out the exercise mat and doing some yoga. Or it could be scheduling a chat with a coach so that you can figure out what it is that could make you feel happy and balanced. Putting yourself first, even just through small gestures, can boost our self-esteem, our sense of wellbeing, and our happiness.
If you’d like any support with any of this, feel free to book a complimentary coaching call with myself (Laura) through the GS method. I’d love to chat with you and show you how possible it is to stop feeling so exhausted, tired, and energetically drained.