Happy New Year, and I really hope you had the happiest of holidays!

That said, each year, when January 1st rocks around, while there is hope and optimism for the future, it is often intermingled with pressure to make changes, post-festivities exhaustion, and the dreaded SAD (seasonal affective disorder). The thing we often forget at this time of year, is that we are a part of nature, and nature is NOT YET in a period of renewal.

Think about it: if you look outside your window, you will likely see grey skies, frosty mornings, long, dark, cold nights, and the barren branches of trees, resting dormant until the first whispers of spring arrive. But of course, in our human society, we now live by this calendar which states that come the first week of January, we are 'back to work' and 'back to school', and we are conditioned not only to 'return' but to actually do so with more energy, vigour and passion than we did just a few days or weeks earlier. We forget that we are still in the midst of midwinter, and for so many of us, the twelve days of Christmas don't even end until after our 'return-to-work date' has begun.

You may be different to me… You may be someone who is raring to go on January 1st. Or maybe you gear up for the first New Moon of a New Year, and hit the 'go-go-go' button from then. Or perhaps, like me, you prefer to focus in on self-care, reflections, and intention-setting in the period between Yule and Springtime, allowing your intuition to guide you.

Either way, I wanted to share some Winter Wellness tips with you, which have served (and continue to serve) me for many years.

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Deep Hibernation Routine

Just as many other mammals do at this time of year, we need a period of hibernation and rest. As blissful as it sounds to sleep for weeks on end though, we know this isn't possible, so instead we often suppress the urge to rest and subscribe to the hustle-and-bustle hamster-wheel-culture which society feeds us. But we really don't need to throw the baby out with the bathwater.

Although we can't hunker down in a little nest and close our eyes until the flowers begin to push up, we can implement a couple of different hibernation adaptations which can serve us so well. For example, getting to bed a little earlier at night (even just 15 minutes earlier!) and creating a more sleep-supportive bedtime routine (eg. ending screen-time a little sooner before bed, taking a hot bath or shower, turning the lights down low etc) can be really beneficial.

We can also focus in on grounding in our own home space a little more… I like to do this with 'nesting activities' like unpacking from the holidays, finding a spot for everything, doing the laundry and dishes and so on, so home feels that little bit more 'homey'.

Finally, taking care of ourselves by keeping warm is vital to the hibernation process: hot water bottles, blankets, warm drinks and more help us to feel that little bit more deeply rested.

Just a few weeks of doing the above can stand us in the best stead possible to show up and serve in the Springtime.

Letting Yourself Off The 'Resolution Overwhelm' Hook

We have developed this habit in our society of creating resolutions, goals and routines in time for each New Year to begin. And yet, we know that each and every year without fail, we very often feel like losers by the end of the first week in January because we've already 'fallen off the wagon'. Typically from that point, we shelf (and attempt to forget) the resolutions we'd set for the year, knowing full-well that come the following year we will likely have the same goals and routines written down. So it continues.

Now, I am someone that LOVES the promise and hope of a New Year. I'm not saying that we should all just continue with the bad habits of the year before and give up any idea of a New Year bringing in new possibilities for who we are and who we might become. BUT, I am saying that a crucial part is often missed.

What is the point of setting new targets, when we haven't even reflected on those of the previous year? We need time to process the experiences, crystalise the wisdom, and give thanks for what has led us to this place, before we can start setting solid, achievable and intuitively-led intentions for the year ahead. Meditation, cord-cutting, practicing gratitude and so on, are beautiful ways for us to honour what has been so that we can see more clearly what is to come.

And alongside that, we can of course create dreamy vision boards, begin a new journal, talk with friends about what they want for the next twelve months, feel into a 'word for the year', and pick some oracle cards… But all of this is done from this soft, playful, and feminine space, rather than from a strict masculine space of deadlines, numbers and rules (which is how most New Year's Resolutions are made!)

Creating an actionable blueprint for the completion of these intentions, boundaries and values can come a little later.

Reduce Energetic Abrasion

The holidays can be exceptionally overwhelming… Maybe you stayed someplace that isn't your home, were contained in a space with other people, or were out-and-about visiting and doing the rounds. While this can be a lot of fun, we can also find ourselves energetically exhausted.

Tell-tale signs of this include:

• sensory over-stimulation

• social anxiety verging on paranoia

• headaches and tummy aches

• literal exhaustion or feeling 'wired and tired' to the point where we can't sleep

• spacing out and memory loss

• snapping and feeling irritable

• low appetite or on the flip-side insatiable cravings

• panic and a feeling of needing to 'escape'

• obsessive compulsive behaviours, addiction or intrusive thoughts

• worry, stress and anxiety over seemingly 'nothing'

• struggling to self-regulate

• getting sick

There are plenty more examples of this too, but the ones listed above are the ones which impact me personally at times and I refer to this as 'accumulative energetic abrasion'. This is the reason why sensory deprivation can be such a soothing thing for so many people, so while you may not be ready to jump in a floatation tank anytime soon, you may want to try your own little version of it.

Breathe some fresh air, sit in a quiet room, read something fantastical, take a digital detox, stroke your pet… The simpler, the better. Honestly, sometimes for me, it can be as simple as sitting in my car for five minutes, or closing my eyes while the kettle boils. Allow yourself some time to remove or at least reduce, everything which brings any kind of energy your way which might otherwise overwhelm you.

And YES, sometimes, that means fun/excited/optimistic/vibrant/motivational energy. You don't ALWAYS need to be doing something 'productive' like listening to a podcast, or taking a training, or 'going deep' on your hopes for the New Year. Sometimes, in January in particular, just sitting in stillness and silence is the medicine we need the most.

Incorporate Wellness Practices SEAMLESSLY

Let the word 'seamlessly' be you guide here: we're NOT trying to implement a holistic wellness to-do list which is going to sap more energy by putting on more pressure than your day job. That's not fun, and most importantly, not effective.

Instead, find little ways that you can incorporate wellness practices seamlessly into your day to day.

Can you switch out showers for baths? Replace your duvet with a weighted blanket? Write a sentence each morning and evening into a journal which you keep beside your bed? Stretch and squat while you brush your teeth? Sip your morning drink in the garden instead of on the sofa? Switch your phone to airplane mode before bed? Put gentle music on while you do your skincare routine?

These tiny little changes can make such a difference to your mind, mood and manifestation capacity, not only because they inspire a slower pace of living, a deeper mind-body connection, and a lifestyle which is self-care led, but it can actually boost a sense of self-worth too. The fact that you are reclaiming these little moments that might otherwise be spent 'doom-scrolling', or staring off into space, or snoozing the alarm, shows that you are worth it.

Something I love to do for myself in this way has become a part of my pre-bed routine… I will put soft music and lighting on while I boil the kettle, and during this boiling-time I will do a very quick tidy of the living room. When the kettle is boiled, I stop, pour my hot water bottle, refill the kettle (so that the next morning I have one less menial task to do!) and go and put the hot water bottle in my bed. I will brush my teeth, do my skincare routine and write a sentence in my journal, before getting into my now-toasty bed. It's such a simple little routine that takes around ten minutes in total, but the fact that I've been so 'thoughtful' to myself makes such a difference.

Nourish The Body

Deprivation at any time of the year is a struggle, but during midwinter, it is positively torture. Don't do it.

However, that's not to say that your approach to nutrition should go out of the window… In fact, it's kind of the opposite.

January is a wonderful time for nourishment. We've likely spent much of the holidays in a cycle of disordered eating: binge, punish, reward, binge, punish, reward. We go to a Christmas party and feast on the buffet. So the next day, we fast until lunch. But then at lunch we're so 'proud' of ourselves for the fast, that we will reward ourselves with a pudding. Then that night we say yes to a few more wines than was wise. So the next day, we decide to drink just water all day. But then someone cracks the cheeseboard out at lunch and we skipped the mid-morning biscuit tin, so why not? And so on.

If we were to continue this cycle in a bigger way, the whole of January would be punishment-central. And we'd end up feeling weak and burnt out, with digestive issues, inflammation, and a busted immune system to boot.

Let's not.

Instead, use the month of January to recognise your overall health goals… For me, this year, I'm looking to move away from my iron medication, so I need to boost my iron levels naturally through food and boost my probiotic intake and hydration so that the iron can be properly absorbed. I'm also interested in boosting my protein intake, and consuming more foods to improve the quality of my skin. My immune system often struggles too, so it's time to pour the vitamins in as well.

Can you see how focusing on what we are putting in feels a lot more intuitive (especially at the time of the year when our body arguably needs its fuel the most) than focusing on what we are taking out? Can you see how it feels softer, and gentler, and kinder to our bodies? And how if, when the time comes, we decide to embark on some sort of nutrition 'cut', it will be a much easier transition than if we tried to launch straight into it now?

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The bottom line is that your approach to January doesn't need to look like the magazines, a PT on instagram, or Shirley in accounts say it should look. You don't need to start dating like all the good men are evaporating, or sign up for a gruelling workout regime, or fight-to-the-death for a promotion that you don't even want deep down.

You just need to take care of yourself, and your loved ones. Winter Wellness is getting back to basics: simplify, minimise and rest.

There will be plenty of time during the next 365 days to chase your dreams… Instead, take the time and space to dream them in the first place.

With grace and grit,

Gabriella

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