Shake It Off: Winter, Sickness and All the Things

I am too that point in winter where I have been wearing the same sports bra for 4 days now, I rotate 3 over-sized pullover hoodies from the Victorias secret pink line with leggings, and all I want to eat is carbs because well I’m hibernating. I work from a home office if I am not traveling in front of clients. With the recent Coronavirus, travel restriction is becoming a reality. I worry if the weather doesn't improve in the midwest soon, I could be living in a sweatshirt forever.

But here is the real talk, this is for the ladies reading this: I am not one to shave my legs much in the winter because why the hell would I? My legs are pasty, dry and always covered.. oh wait.. I guess I have a husband. 

The other night, I hit my shin on the side of our bed, the overhead light was off. So the only light I had to see my wound was my husbands night stand lamp. I raised my leg up into the light and he yelled “ahhhh!" I sort of yelped too. It was my own come to jesus moment that it was time to get my life right.

Listen, Snow is pretty and some people like cold weather, but i'm over it. My elbows are crusty, my husband and I have to rub this saline gel on the inside of our noses at night because they so chapped from constantly blowing our nose, and for the love of God… our house might as well be an urgent care facility because between my son, husband and I, one of us is ALWAYS sick!

On top of that, I feel like I have just been dealt a lot of just #adulting sh*t storms over the last 3 months. To sum up how I feel...

Remember when you were little and would fall on the trampoline, and everyone else would keep jumping so you couldn’t get back up? That’s how this winter has felt to me.

But I keep getting back up regardless.

I keep hitting my internal reset button because like you… YES YOU… i'm a fighter. Im scrappy, I will not accept this bullsh*t anymore and spring is so close, I can already picture myself on a patio with a nice glass of white wine in hand. 

So lets talk about how we shake off this winter blues. 

I felt this topic was relevant because frankly the coronavirus has everyone in a stir. Travel restrictions in place, vacations are being cancelled and overall morale is down all around the world, rightfully so. But life must go on and we must continue to conduct ourselves in a way that is positive and productive. So I want to take your mind off of all of that for a quick 5 minutes and talk about some ways to shake off the winter blues. 

1. Embrace the sun. I literally troll my weather app to figure out which days look to be sunny and even a degree above 40. Im a midwest girl with a a need for west coast weather. But with the gloom of winter, grey skies and cold weather, its time we start embracing even an hour of sunshine. So I plan my week around the weather. If the weather looks even slightly nicer than usual, I go work at the coffee shop or make it a point to get out of the house for errands. Its so easy in this grey winter weather to hide in our homes, my office is my cave and never come out. But if the sun decides to shine her face, make it a priority to soak it up. Plan your day around it and maybe even get in a walk if you can bare it. 
2. Tidy up. I will admit that I only watched the first episode of Marie Kondos show tidying up. To be honest, I live with the male version of Marie Kondo (my husband). I am grateful for that but it wasn’t always that way. However, what I have learned is having a clean, organized home helps you feel at peace, even when you feel imprisoned. I suggest you start with the room you spend the most time in… the kitchen or for me, my office. It doesn’t matter how tired we are, how dirty things get or how many other things I feel like I need to do, I don't go to sleep until the kitchen is clean and I don’t start my day until my office is organized. Dishes put away, counters wiped cleaned, and a post it note with my reminders front and center so its the first thing I see in the morning. Also, not to totally sound like a mom, but keep your own room clean! This has been a learned habit over the last 4 years because i'm the type of person that when trying to get ready, I try on several outfits and instead of just hanging them up, I lay them on the bed or a chair, or a shower rod. But one thing I have implemented to help me fall asleep better is to make sure my “sleeping area” (aka you bedroom) is tidy, smelling fresh and a peaceful area to fall asleep in.
3. Challenge yourself to learn more and multi-task. If I am stuck inside, doing laundry, I am also listening to a podcast or a book on tape. If I am in the car, by myself without Mickey Mouse clubhouse playing in the background, I am listening to a podcast. Seasonal depression is real. We get stuck, run down, claustrophobic and slowly drift into the constant state of feeling unmotivated. Use these moments of “inactivity” to learn something new whether its a new hobby, language, pick up a passion project or start investing your time to build your own side hustle. Whatever you decide to do, the winter is the perfect time to challenge yourself to do more because once that weather gets nice again, we will all want to be outside enjoying it with our loved ones. Need a suggestion for a podcast? See below for my latest episode on The Bold and Brave Podcast.
4. Start cooking. I am never one to jump on the fitness bandwagon in January and February is always an insane travel month for me. Yes, I know these are excuses but I am getting to the point. We are now in the month of March and swimsuit season is right around the corner. I have started creating a list of low carb, health(ier) meals to start cooking for my family on my Trello board. I have always loved cooking but when you have a 3 year old sometimes you just eat whatever they don't. But i'm determined to cook again. So, lately, I have been spending Sunday afternoon (during nap time) creating our meals for the week, then building out my grocery list from there and of course submitting my order to instacart. Whatever I can outsource to make my life easier, I highly suggest you do it. 
5. Last but not least, do something that makes you feel good. In other words, engage in a healthy, pleasurable activity that helps release those sought after endorphins. Book a spa day, get your nails done, light a candle and pick up your favorite book, take a new yoga class, or take a self development course. Once the warm weather hits, we will all want to be outside, doing activities with our family and getting out of the house. THIS guys, this is the perfect time to invest in yourself before the hustle and bustle of spring hits us. Just because the skies are grey, its rainy, snowing or all of the above doesn't mean you can’t pull yourself out of bed and do something that makes your soul feel good. 

Maybe you want to finally get that yoga certification, go back to school, build your website, write your book, enroll in that online course to level yourself up or make a career change. NOW is the time to invest in YOU.

Shake off the winter blues and whatever else is holding you back. Your excuses as to why you haven’t started yet are all dried up.

Embrace this moment of hibernation as a chance chase your dreams, for real. 

If we aren’t taking care of ourselves and pursuing what makes us happy, we are really doing a disservice to those around us including our family. 

My ask of you is to right now, write down 5 ways you are going to shake off the winter blues over the next 30 days. Write them down, plan them out and get them done. You can thank me later. 

BCJ

https://www.theboldandbravesite.com/