As we move through the second half of winter and the days slowly begin to brighten, many of us still feel the lingering effects of the darker months. Subtle shifts in mood, motivation, energy levels and performance are common at this time of year. This is often described as the having the ‘winter blues.’ To help us understand these seasonal changes and how we can best navigate them, we turn to Professor Stephen Palmer, Honorary Professor of Practice at UWTSD and a leading expert in stress management and resilience with more than 60 books on wellbeing, coaching, and mental health. Here Professor Palmer shares his insights into why these seasonal shifts happen, along with practical tips to help you manage the winter blues. Let’s start by looking at what we actually mean by the winter blues. The winter blues – not to be confused with the ‘holiday blues’, which relate to feeling low because of a specific event or festive period – describe a subclinical pattern of seasonal low mood that does not meet the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM‑5‑TR) criteria for a depressive disorder. Signs of the winter blues typically involve mild sadness, reduced energy and lower motivation, triggered by the shorter daylight hours at this time of year. By contrast, Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD) is recognised in DSM‑5‑TR as a Major Depressive Disorder with a seasonal pattern, in which a full depressive episode occurs predictably at a particular time of year, most commonly during…
