Every year around November, I start to suspect that my personality has been kidnapped and replaced by someone who only wants carbs, naps, and an unreasonable number of twinkle lights. It took me a while to admit it, but here we are: “hi, my name is Grace, and I have seasonal affective disorder.”
And while that sounds like the kind of thing that belongs in a Very Serious Medical Pamphlet, around here it usually just looks like me drinking hot coffee under three blankets and trying to convince myself that 4:30 p.m. is not an appropriate time to get into pajamas.
But the truth is, if winter tries to sit on your chest a little too hard too, you’re not alone. And thankfully, fighting back doesn’t have to be gloomy, clinical, or dramatic. Sometimes it looks like a little sunlight, a little strategy, and a whole lot of God’s grace holding us steady when the days get short and the grocery bill gets long.
Somehow, without fail, the winter months still manage to feel approximately 4,528 days long. Give or take a leap year.
What Seasonal Affective Disorder Really Feels Like
We’re officially in the season where millions experience Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD)—which, based on the name, feels like the medical community finally threw their hands up and said, “Look, we’re tired, too. Let’s just call it what it is.”
For years, I didn’t know SAD was a real thing. I just assumed every winter that:
- I had lost my personality,
- My brain had switched to airplane mode,
- And my motivation had packed its things and moved to Florida.
Then the Lord gently whispered:
“Sweet daughter… you’re not broken. You’re just sun-deprived.”
And that was the start of my winter wellness journey—equal parts faith, practical coping, and finding ways to laugh at myself before the darkness swallowed me whole.
So here it is: my Gathering Grace Winter Survival Guide—poking a little fun, always faith-filled, and sprinkled with wisdom learned through many years of winter warfare.
Make a Winter Blues Battle Plan
1. Make a Plan—Because Winging It Only Works for Chickens
Years ago, I hit a wall so hard emotionally that the wall filed a police report. Most of that season happened in winter, when even getting out of bed felt like an Olympic event, and putting on pants should’ve earned me a medal.
I realized pretty quickly I could no longer wing it with my mental health.
So I made my first Battle Plan—five small, doable daily habits covering my mental, physical, emotional, spiritual, and relational health.
- It wasn’t glamorous.
- It wasn’t color-coded.
- It didn’t even have a cute cover…The horror!
But it saved me.
On the good days, it grounded me, and on the bad days, it reminded me I wasn’t as powerless as I felt.
On the really bad days—when I caught myself eating chocolate at 9 a.m. and wondering if showering was a biblical command—it gave me direction.
And through all of it, I learned:
- A grace-filled plan is a lifeline
- A tool, not a test.
- A friend, not a failure.
If winter feels tough this year, maybe you need a Winter Blues Battle Plan—simple, compassionate steps to carry you through the blizzards.
Follow the Seasons: A Grace-Filled Approach to the Winter Slowdown
2. Follow the Seasons AKA: You’re Allowed to Hibernate
A few years ago, if you came to my corner of the internet for soothing words like slow down… rest… breathe…, you would have been met with a peppermint mocha–fueled battle cry of:
“RISE AND GRIND, SISTERS IN CHRIST!”
But the Lord has softened me. Or age has. Or children. Definitely children.
Last winter, I did something unheard of:
I set zero goals in January.
None.
Not even a pretend one like “drink more water” which we all know is code for “continue being dehydrated but feel guilty about it.”
I slowed… all the way… down.
And somehow?
I got more done, felt more peace, and stopped arguing with the month of January like it was a stubborn toddler.
And then I discovered the ancient New Year began in March.
March.
As in: sunshine, growth, warmth, birds chirping, and your spirit feeling alive again.
So listen—if your soul is whispering, slow down, do it.
It’s not laziness. It’s wisdom.
You can follow the seasons, and you can hibernate. Allow yourself to simmer, and allow yourself to rest. You can eat soup every day and call it “self-care.”
Winter is not broken. And neither are you.
Movement That Helps When Seasonal Affective Disorder Hits Hard
3. Keep Moving. I Know. I’m Sorry.
Before you throw a slipper at me—I don’t mean sprinting or CrossFit or anything requiring a membership card.
I mean: move your body because it helps your brain.
Turns out, 45 minutes of exercise, five days a week, can brighten your mood almost as much as the stuff professionals pull out for the tough cases.
The point is:
Movement helps more than we like to admit. Walking counts. Dancing in your kitchen counts. Wrestling a toddler counts double. Doing laundry counts emotionally if not physically.
Pair it with worship music, a podcast, or a prayer.
Make it small, doable, and merciful.
Let the Light In
4. Simple Ways to Lift Your Winter Mood
Our bodies crave light almost as much as our children crave snacks the moment you sit down.
Winter reduces our natural light intake, so we have to:
- Get outside early
- Sit in the sun whenever it dares appear
- Use a light therapy lamp
- Resist the death scroll at dawn
I use my light lamp during my morning quiet time—Bible open, journal nearby, lamp glowing at me like a supportive but slightly overbearing friend.
Light matters, it lifts, and light aligns the soul and the schedule.
John 1:5 says,
“The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.”
And that’s as true for your living room as it is for your life.
Create a Cozy, “Gezellig” Winter Sanctuary
5. Get Cozy or in Dutch we say “Gezellig”
Winter was made for cozy.
- Blankets.
- Warm drinks
- Candles
- Low lighting
- Soup that tastes like it’s hugging you from the inside
Call it “gezellig” (guh-zell-ich) if you want to sound cultured, or call it “wintering”.
Call it “I refuse to be cold and sad at the same time.”
- Cinnamon rolls in the oven? Holy.
- Bubble baths? Sanctified.
- Family movie nights with blankets? Ministry.
Winter becomes easier when you stop fighting it and start befriending it—like the slightly moody mom who softens once you give her a cup of tea and a hug.
Go Where the Help Is: Christian Community in the Winter Struggle
6. A Christian Woman’s Guide to Not Pretending Everything Is Fine
Listen closely: We don’t do hidden suffering here. And we don’t do silent struggling. We don’t do “I’m fine” when we’re clearly one burnt casserole away from tears.
Tell someone. Tell your spouse, your friend, your pastor, your therapist, your group chat. In turn, they can speak truth, encouragement, perspective—light in the darkness.
This is the beauty of Christian community:
When your flame flickers, someone else carries the candle.
— Grace
Final Word
Seasonal Affective Disorder Doesn’t Get the Last Say
Winter is a season—not a sentence. A chapter—not the whole book.
An invitation to rest, reflect, reboot, and remember that God is the same in the dark as He is in the light.
The same God who meets you in July sunshine meets you in the January gray. He doesn’t need better weather to be faithful and He doesn’t need clearer skies to be close.
And even on the longest-feeling day of the longest-feeling month; the Light still shines.
And the darkness has not overcome it.