As the days get shorter and the cold settles in, many of us start to feel it…that quiet heaviness that creeps in with winter. Your motivation dips, your mood flattens; everything feels slower.
Is it Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD) or winter’s natural “yin” energy – a very human response to darker days?
This time of year can feel like an emotional ambush. You wake up in the dark, drag through the day and collapse at night feeling fatigued, disconnected and unmotivated. You may wonder if something is wrong with you, like why you aren’t keeping up the same pace you maintained in summer. You may even judge yourself for feeling low or overwhelmed.
Many people don’t hear this often enough:
Your energy changes with the seasons, and winter brings a natural shift inward. However, when that shift becomes sadness, loneliness, or emotional paralysis, it’s time to understand what your body is really telling you.
Do you feel broken?
I often think of someone I spoke with last January, who asked me if something was “broken” inside her. She was sleeping more, wanting to socialize less, and struggling to get through her workday. She assumed she had full-blown depression. But as we talked, it became clear: she wasn’t dysfunctional, she was depleted.
What she really needed was permission to slow down, paired with just enough gentle action to keep her qi moving. Once she understood that winter naturally draws us inward, and that emotions often shift after we act, not before, everything began to change.
The key is understanding the balance between reflection and action:
- Sometimes the body needs stillness, warmth, and nourishment.
- Other times, it needs a spark – doing something before you feel like doing it.
Emotions follow movement.
Movement follows awareness.
And healing often begins with the smallest possible action.
She started with tiny steps: a morning walk, calling a friend once a week, and keeping her acupuncture appointment even when she didn’t feel like it. Within a month, her heaviness began to lift.
For some, taking action looks like scheduling acupuncture to help reset the nervous system and improve mood.
For others, it’s herbal medicine, improved sleep routines, nutritional support, or even simply reaching out to a friend.
Winter is the season of yin energy – a time for building, storing and resting. Feeling quieter or slower is normal. But when heaviness turns into hopelessness or daily functioning becomes difficult, it may be Seasonal Affective Disorder, low qi, or a combination of both.
Whether your winter struggle is emotional, energetic, or biochemical, you don’t have to navigate it alone. There are interventions that can restore balance: gently, naturally, and effectively.
New patient? You deserve support, and winter can be a season of healing rather than survival. If you’re feeling sad, overwhelmed, or stuck in the heaviness of the season, I can help you take the next step. Schedule a free 15-minute consultation online or call (303) 688-6698.
Colorado Natural Medicine & Acupuncture is a functional medicine practice owned and operated by Dr. Adam Graves, ND, LAc, in Castle Rock, CO.
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