Claire Hopple

You don’t need to be diagnosed with Seasonal Affective Disorder to experience the negative effects of the colder, darker days. Every year, it’s like we’re all shocked about just how early it can get dark, wondering where the sun went as if we’ve never gone through winter before. To ease into this time of year and not get wiped out by the crueler side of Mother Nature, here are a few tactics to try.

The year’s not over yet and already its bizarre occurrences and oddities are innumerable.

If you want to burn off your hair, possibly several limbs and maybe even your entire yard, then by all means, fire up that completely frozen bird. But if you’d rather play it safe, follow these simple tips:

Nostalgia is actually considered a valuable copoing mechanism for depression, anxiety, and especially grief. Plus, not only does it counteract anxious feelings, it can actually make you more hopeful about the future. No wonder a higher occurrence of nostalgic feelings are found in the most resilient people.

You more than anyone should try to carve out some space for yourself.

Nothing makes me get my Grinch on faster than glitter-bombed Christmas wrapping and nasally voices ringing in my eardrums at every store.

Hey, the holidays are coming up, and you’re gonna see some relatives.

If you’re unsure of your favorite, take a look at the shades dominating your closet, the common color found in your accent pillows and decor, the paint on your walls, perhaps the car in your driveway. These can be helpful hints, but your favorite color could also just be what you’re generally drawn to out in the world.

In case you haven’t noticed, food elitism did not go out with the abolishment of the food pyramid. But before you call your broccoli a power-hungry classist, make sure you know your basic facts.

It’s not that you don’t love the people calling you (unless you’re solely receiving spam calls), it’s just that you’d rather be with them. You think that the phone can’t replace seeing their faces, experiencing their presence in all the dimensions currently available to humans. And sometimes (okay, a lot of the time) you just need time to recharge by yourself. Why does that feel so wrong sometimes?