Winter Is Here: Create Your free Plan For Seasonal Depression
If you live in Canada, you already know the drill. The days get shorter, the air sharper, and before you know it, the sunlight that carried you through summer has slipped away. For many, winter isn’t just about digging out the heavy coat or bracing for icy roads; it’s about bracing for a inner shift.
Seasonal depression (often called Seasonal Affective Disorder, or SAD) is more than just the “winter blues.” It’s a recognized mental health condition that can drain your energy, disrupt your sleep, and make even simple tasks feel overwhelming. If you’ve noticed that your mood drops every winter and lifts again in spring, maybe you’re not imagining it. Perhaps you’re experiencing your body and mind’s natural response to real environmental changes.
Here’s the good news: being aware of the risk is the first step in protecting yourself. By preparing before the season hits its hardest, you can give yourself the best chance of meeting winter with steadiness, instead of dread.
I Beg You: Give Yourself Permission to Slow Down
One of the most painful parts of seasonal depression is not the fatigue or the low mood itself, but the shame that follows it. Many people believe they “should” have the same energy, mood, and productivity in December that they had in July. And when they do not, they think something is wrong with them. But this belief is not biological. It is cultural.
The Cultural Lie: You Must Be 100 Percent Productive All Year
Modern society has conditioned us to believe that our worth comes from constant output. Most of the messages we receive about being a “successful” adult are rooted in productivity culture.
You should always be busy.
You should always be available.
You should always feel motivated.
You should always perform at the same level, no matter the season.
These ideas feel normal because they are everywhere, but they are extremely new in human history. They emerged largely from the industrial revolution, when factories required people to work at the same pace every day, regardless of weather, daylight, or season. For the first time, productivity was disconnected from the natural world.
For most of human history, people lived in alignment with the seasons. This was not laziness. It was survival.
Winter meant: decreased daylight, decreased mobility, decreased food availability, increased need for warmth and conservation.
Communities naturally slowed down. People slept more. Families gathered closer. Tasks shifted from outward labor to inward maintenance and rest.
Until very recently, the body’s rhythm used to follow the earth’s rhythm.
Even in early agricultural societies, winter was considered a time for repair, reflection, planning, and restoring energy. No one expected themselves to live at “summer speed” in January, because they understood that both the land and the body needed time to replenish.
The invention of electric light further disconnected us from the sun’s natural rhythm, and urbanization pulled us even further away from the seasonal pace that humans lived by for thousands of years. As productivity culture and capitalism took root, our bodies stopped being seen as guides and started being treated as obstacles to efficiency. Instead of listening to seasonal cues, we learned to override them.
The issue is that your biology did not evolve at the same speed as society. Your brain still responds to light and darkness, your hormones still shift with the sun, your circadian rhythm still changes in winter, and your nervous system still seeks slower, quieter seasons to recover.
When winter arrives, it makes sense that your body naturally gravitates toward deeper rest, slower mornings, quieter evenings, more reflection, and a greater need for warmth, comfort, and connection. These impulses are not signs of failure; they are signs of being human. Seasonal depression worsens when these natural rhythms collide with cultural expectations that demand you perform the same way in December as you do in June. Your biology urges you to slow down while culture pressures you to speed up, and the tension between the two creates suffering.
Giving yourself permission to slow down means returning to the seasonal rhythm your ancestors lived by long before industrialization and urbanization. Honouring your body’s cues helps stabilize your mood, regulate your nervous system, lower cortisol, soften self-criticism, restore energy, and build resilience. Slowing down is not giving up; it is choosing to live in alignment with your biology instead of fighting against it.
Winter is not a test of willpower. It is simply a different season. You were never meant to maintain summer energy year-round or function like a machine. Listening to your body’s ancient wisdom is an act of integrity, not indulgence.
When you allow yourself a gentler pace during the months that ask more of you, you are not falling behind. You are returning to the rhythm humans lived in harmony with long before productivity culture existed. You are aligning with nature, with your biology, and with the truth that you deserve gentleness in the seasons that challenge you most.
What Is Seasonal Depression (Seasonal Affective Disorder)?
Now that I have covered the cultural aspect of seasonal depression, I will step off my soapbox (ahem) and let’s dive into the clinical data.
Seasonal depression, often referred to as Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD), is a form of depression that follows a predictable seasonal pattern. For most people, symptoms begin to appear in late fall when daylight hours decrease, build in intensity over the winter months, and gradually ease as spring sunlight returns. What makes SAD distinct is not just the timing, but the consistency: the same symptoms returning during the same months, year after year.
From a clinical perspective, SAD is understood as a subtype of Major Depressive Disorder with a seasonal pattern. This means the symptoms are not “just feeling off” in the winter but meet the diagnostic criteria for depression, including changes in mood, motivation, sleep, energy, appetite, and cognitive functioning. You may notice a heavier emotional load, reduced capacity to cope, and a sense that you are not functioning like you do during the rest of the year.
A major driver of SAD has to do with how your brain responds to changes in light exposure. Reduced sunlight can disrupt your circadian rhythm (your internal body clock), which affects everything from sleep cycles to hormone regulation. With less daylight, your brain produces more melatonin (which increases sleepiness) and less serotonin (which affects mood stability). Even people who are typically high functioning, structured, or emotionally aware can experience a noticeable shift because these biological changes happen beneath willpower, motivation, or mindset. I want to emphasize that again: seasonal depression is not a result of low willpower, motivation, or mindset.
While SAD is most commonly associated with winter, it is important to know that a small percentage of people experience the opposite pattern: depressive symptoms emerging in spring and summer. This is less common, but it highlights the fact that seasonal shifts affect the body in complex ways.
It is common for people to minimize or dismiss their experience by saying things like “I am just tired,” “I am just lazy in the winter,” or “It is normal to feel this way in Canada.” But SAD is not a personality flaw or a lack of resilience. It is a legitimate, well researched condition that intersects with biology, environment, and nervous system functioning. Naming it accurately can reduce shame and help you understand that what you are experiencing makes sense, given the season and the science behind it.
If you notice yourself having the same seasonal crash each year, or if your mood consistently improves once spring arrives, these are strong signs that seasonal depression may be part of your experience.
Common Symptoms of Seasonal Depression
Seasonal depression shows up differently from person to person, but there are several patterns that tend to repeat across individuals who experience SAD. These symptoms are not simply about feeling “a little down” in the winter. As previously mentioned, slowing down in the winter is a very natural rhythm to our seasonal clock. SAD symptoms, on the other hand, reflect meaningful shifts in the brain and body that impact mood, motivation, energy, and functioning. Understanding these symptoms can help you recognize what is happening sooner, rather than blaming yourself or assuming you should be able to push through it.
Persistent low mood
Many people describe feeling emotionally heavy, sad, flat, or numb for most of the day, nearly every day. This often feels different from situational sadness because it lingers and does not lift even when life circumstances are relatively stable. If you notice yourself feeling sad for a prolonged period without an external reason, this may be a warning sign.
Loss of interest or pleasure
Activities that normally feel enjoyable or grounding can suddenly start to feel neutral or draining. This is called anhedonia, and it is one of the clearest indicators that mood has shifted into a depressive pattern.
Significant changes in sleep
Disrupted sleep is extremely common in SAD. You might sleep far more than usual, struggle to get out of bed, feel tired even after long periods of rest, or notice your sleep schedule drifting later. With less sunlight, the brain produces more melatonin, which increases fatigue and oversleeping.
Low or depleted energy
This is not regular tiredness. People often describe a deep sense of exhaustion or a “no fuel in the tank” feeling that rest does not fix. This can make routine tasks like showering, making meals, or responding to messages feel overwhelming.
Difficulty concentrating
Many people notice brain fog or a reduced ability to focus. You might reread the same sentence multiple times, lose track of conversations, or feel mentally slow. This is not a reflection of intelligence or effort. It may be a symptom of depression.
Increased guilt or self criticism
It is common for people to blame themselves when their functioning drops. You may notice thoughts like “I should be doing more,” “What is wrong with me,” or “Everyone else seems fine.” These thoughts reflect changes in mood and cognition, not personal failure.
Changes in appetite or weight
In winter months, the brain may crave carbohydrates and sugary foods more frequently. This is partly due to serotonin seeking. For some people this means increased appetite; for others appetite decreases. Either pattern can be a sign of seasonal depression.
Social withdrawal
Many individuals start pulling away from friends, partners, or family without fully understanding why. Even if you value connection deeply, the combination of fatigue, low motivation, and mood changes can make socializing feel like too much.
Worsening of existing mental health conditions
If you live with ADHD, bipolar disorder, anxiety, or other conditions, seasonal depression can intensify existing symptoms. People often notice more emotional dysregulation, irritability, or difficulty coping with stress.
These symptoms do not reflect weakness or lack of discipline. They reflect the real impact that seasonal changes have on brain chemistry, hormones, energy regulation, and circadian rhythm. Recognizing these signs early can help you intervene before the season becomes overwhelming.
Why Seasonal Depression Happens
While research is ongoing, scientists agree that reduced sunlight plays a major role in the development of seasonal depression. What looks like a “mood problem” on the surface is actually a complex interaction between your brain, hormones, circadian rhythm, and environment. Understanding the biology behind SAD can help reduce the shame that people often feel when winter hits and their functioning suddenly drops.
Disruption of the circadian rhythm
Your circadian rhythm is your internal twenty four hour body clock. It regulates sleep, energy, appetite, and even emotional responsiveness. This system relies heavily on sunlight. When daylight hours shorten in the fall, your circadian rhythm can fall out of sync with your daily life. This misalignment can cause fatigue, irritability, poor sleep, and difficulty concentrating. For many people, it feels like their body is operating in a different time zone from the rest of the world.
Changes in serotonin levels
Serotonin is a neurotransmitter that plays a key role in mood stabilization, motivation, and emotional balance. Sunlight helps regulate serotonin production. When there is less sun exposure, the brain may produce less serotonin, which can contribute to depressive symptoms such as low mood, decreased interest in activities, and increased cravings for carbohydrates. This is part of why people with SAD often feel emotionally heavier, even when nothing in their life has changed.
Increased melatonin production
Melatonin is a hormone that helps signal your body that it is time to sleep. In darker months, your brain naturally produces more melatonin. Higher melatonin levels can lead to oversleeping, sluggishness, difficulty waking up, and feeling tired throughout the day. This is not laziness. It is a biological shift in how your body interprets the light available to it.
Vitamin D deficiency
Many Canadians experience lower vitamin D levels in winter because sunlight triggers vitamin D synthesis in the skin. Research suggests that low vitamin D may play a role in mood regulation and energy levels. While it is not the sole cause of SAD, it can contribute to the intensity of symptoms.
Stress on the nervous system
Winter conditions can place additional stress on the nervous system. Colder temperatures, reduced outdoor time, fewer social interactions, and increased demands around the holiday season can all combine with the biological shifts listed above. For people who already live with conditions like ADHD, bipolar disorder, or anxiety, winter can amplify emotional dysregulation or feelings of overwhelm.
You are not imagining it. Your body is responding to real environmental change.
Your energy, mood, motivation, and emotional resilience are deeply tied to the amount of daylight your brain receives. Seasonal depression is not a character flaw or an inability to cope. It is a natural response to a significant change in your environment. When you understand the physiology behind it, the experience becomes far less personal and far more manageable.
Why Preparing Now Matters
It is mid-November (as of publishing this article), and depending on where you live in Canada, the colder weather and shorter days have already started creeping in. The sunlight feels weaker, the evenings arrive earlier, and many people begin noticing the first subtle signs of seasonal heaviness settling in. Even though the season has already shifted, this is still one of the best times to start preparing for seasonal depression.
One of the most important principles in mental health is that we make our most effective plans when we are regulated, not when we are overwhelmed. Once seasonal depression takes hold, many of the symptoms make it harder to take action. Fatigue increases, motivation drops, and negative thought patterns can convince you that nothing will help. This is why many people find themselves waiting until January or February to try coping strategies, only to feel like they just do not have the internal energy to start.
Beginning in mid November still gives you a meaningful window where your symptoms may be emerging but not yet at their peak. This is a period when proactive support makes a significant difference. You are giving yourself a chance to shift the trajectory of the season rather than reacting to symptoms when they become more intense.
Clinically, this is called proactive coping. Instead of waiting for the hardest part of winter and hoping you will have the energy to respond, you prepare your routines, environment, and support system now. You build a foundation while you have more capacity. This means that when your mood dips more noticeably, you already have tools, habits, and structures in place that reduce the impact.
There is also a profound self compassion piece here. Many people with SAD carry shame about how winter affects them. Preparing ahead is a way of saying:
“I know myself. My experience is valid. I deserve care before I am in crisis.”
For high achieving, emotionally complex individuals, this mindset shift is especially important. You might look outwardly capable or “fine” right now, but internally you may already recognize the early signs of seasonal change. Instead of pushing through or hoping this winter will magically feel different, you are giving yourself the dignity of preparation. You are supporting your nervous system rather than working against it.
By taking steps now, you are choosing to meet winter with care instead of neglect, with intention instead of reaction. Preparing early is not a sign of weakness. It is a sign of self awareness and self respect.
How to Cope with Seasonal Depression: Practical Strategies for Support
While there’s no one size fits all plan for seasonal depression, there are several strategies that support both the body and the nervous system during the winter months. Each tool works for a specific reason, and understanding the why behind them can make it easier to follow through and choose what fits your capacity.
Think of these strategies as ingredients. You do not need all of them. You only need the ones that help your system feel more grounded.
Maximize Your Light Exposure
Light is one of the strongest regulators of your circadian rhythm. When sunlight decreases, your internal clock can shift, leading to oversleeping, daytime fatigue, lowered mood, and changes in appetite.
Light exposure helps by:
- Signaling your brain to reduce melatonin production
- Increasing serotonin levels
- Supporting more stable energy and mood throughout the day
How to use it:
Consider a clinical grade light therapy lamp, ideally used early in the morning
Get outside during daylight, even briefly
Keep blinds open immediately upon waking
Protect Your Routines
Depression often disrupts structure. When your circadian rhythm is already vulnerable, irregular sleep and inconsistent habits can intensify symptoms. Gentle routines act like anchors when motivation drops.
Helpful routines include:
- Keeping a fairly consistent sleep and wake time
- Building one small moment of movement each day
- Planning simple meals rather than improvising when energy is low
These routines are not about perfection. They are about creating predictability when your internal world feels chaotic.
Move Your Body with Compassion
Movement increases serotonin and dopamine, regulates the autonomic nervous system, and supports better sleep. Even small amounts of movement can shift your physiology away from shutdown and toward a more balanced state.
For people with seasonal depression, intense workouts are not required. In fact, forcing yourself to do more than your body has capacity for can create shame and self criticism. You only need enough movement to change your internal state. Movement counts even when it is small.
Examples:
- Walking while on a phone call
- A slow walk around the block
- Gentle stretching
- Light strength exercises
- Parking farther from the store
Stay Connected
Depression often pulls people into isolation. The nervous system may interpret isolation as danger, which can deepen symptoms. Healthy connection helps regulate your vagus nerve, supports emotional grounding, and counteracts feelings of worthlessness.
Supportive forms of connection include:
- A fifteen minute call with someone safe
- A weekly check in with a friend or partner
- Attending a community group or class
- Letting one person know you tend to struggle in the winter
You do not need deep, vulnerable conversations every week. You simply need to stay out of emotional isolation
Partner with Your Doctor
Seasonal depression can coexist with vitamin deficiencies (especially Vitamin D), thyroid issues, and other medical factors that worsen low mood and fatigue. A medical professional can help rule out underlying conditions and discuss whether medication or supplementation may help.
This matters in winter because for some people, medication taken seasonally is life-changing. For others, regulating sleep or adjusting supplements is enough. A physician can guide you safely and reduce the guesswork.
Seek Professional Support
Therapy helps you understand your symptoms, build coping strategies tailored to your nervous system, challenge shame based narratives, and develop winter specific resilience. Having a space to process your internal experience prevents you from feeling alone in a season that already encourages emotional withdrawal.
In therapy, you can explore:
- Patterns you notice each winter
- Your emotional needs when energy decreases
- How to create a personalized winter plan
- How your self talk shifts during depressive seasons
- How your existing diagnoses interact with SAD
Therapy becomes a stable anchor when your internal world feels unpredictable.
Why “small steps” matter more than big ones
Many people believe they need to overhaul their whole life to feel better. In reality, seasonal depression responds to cumulative micro shifts, not dramatic changes. Five minutes of light exposure, ten minutes of movement, one planned meal, or one supportive conversation each week can genuinely alter how your nervous system handles winter.
Winter is not asking you to be perfect. It is asking you to care for yourself with intention.
From Advice to Action: Download Your Free Winter Wellness Plan Worksheet
If you are someone who feels the weight of winter every year, it can be incredibly helpful to have a structured plan you can come back to when your energy drops. To support you in building a winter routine that feels realistic and compassionate, I created a free downloadable worksheet that guides you step by step through creating your own Winter Wellness Plan.
This fillable worksheet includes:
- A space to identify your seasonal patterns
- Early warning signs to watch for
- Your core supports
- Tiny micro steps for low energy days
- Environment and nervous system supports
- A self compassion commitment
- A final summary plan you can print, keep on your fridge, or save on your phone
Use it as a gentle guide throughout the season, or as a tool to bring into therapy if you’d like support building a plan that fits your life and nervous system.
You can download the worksheet here
When to Reach Out for Support
If every winter feels heavier or more overwhelming, you do not need to wait until you are at your lowest point to seek support. Many high achieving adults try to “push through,” or worry that reaching out early means they are being dramatic or weak. But noticing your seasonal patterns and acting on them is not fragility. It is self awareness.
If your symptoms return around the same time each year, that is valuable information. Seasonal depression often interacts with other layers you may already carry, such as ADHD, bipolar disorder, cyclothymia, anxiety, perfectionism, people pleasing, or chronic overwhelm. When these patterns collide with winter, the emotional weight can build quickly. Reaching out earlier in the season helps you build strategies that fit your nervous system before the heaviness peaks.
Connection also matters. Isolation is one of the strongest contributors to depressive symptoms, and simply talking to someone who understands your patterns can help your nervous system settle and your perspective soften.
If you are in Calgary or Cochrane, I offer in person counselling. Virtual appointments are available anywhere in Canada.
Therapy offers a space to understand what winter brings up for you, reduce shame, create a realistic plan, make sense of your seasonal patterns, and feel less alone. If you are someone who often looks “fine” on the outside while feeling overwhelmed inside, you deserve a space where you do not have to hold everything together.
If you are curious whether therapy might support you this winter, you are welcome to book a no cost, fifteen minute consultation. It is a gentle, pressure free way to connect and see if we are the right fit.
You do not have to move through another winter the way you always have. A different kind of support can create a different kind of season.
Frequently Asked Questions About Seasonal Depression
What is the difference between seasonal sadness and Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD)?
It is completely normal to feel a little lower in the winter. Shorter days, colder weather, and reduced sunlight naturally affect mood. However, Seasonal Affective Disorder is more than a seasonal slump. SAD meets the clinical criteria for depression, meaning it significantly impacts daily functioning, motivation, sleep, emotional stability, and overall well being.
The key distinction is consistency and severity. If your symptoms appear around the same time each year, last for several months, and meaningfully affect your ability to function, that pattern suggests seasonal depression rather than general winter frustration.
Seasonal sadness is uncomfortable. SAD is debilitating. Both are valid but they require different forms of support.
Why does seasonal depression feel worse in Canada?
Canada has long, dark winters that significantly reduce natural light exposure. Light is one of the most important regulators of mood, sleep, energy, and circadian rhythm. When you live in a northern climate with very short daylight hours, your body experiences more dramatic shifts in serotonin, melatonin, and energy regulation.
This does not mean anything is wrong with you.
It means your biology is reacting exactly as it is designed to when light decreases.
Many people report noticing their symptoms worsen in November and peak between December and February, which aligns with the lowest sunlight of the year.
Does light therapy actually help with Seasonal Affective Disorder?
For many people, yes. Light therapy lamps mimic natural sunlight and help regulate the brain’s circadian rhythm. Research shows that using a high quality, clinical grade light therapy box early in the day can:
- increase serotonin
- decrease melatonin
- improve energy
- stabilize mood
- regulate sleep
However, it is important to speak with your doctor before starting light therapy, especially if you have bipolar disorder, migraines, or eye conditions. When used correctly, it can make a meaningful difference
Can high achieving or high functioning adults get seasonal depression?
Absolutely. In fact, high achieving adults often struggle more than they realize because they are so practiced at masking discomfort and functioning through emotional distress. Many people who experience SAD continue meeting deadlines, showing up for work, or caring for others while quietly falling apart inside.
Being high achieving does not protect you from seasonal depression.
It often just delays recognition that something is wrong.
Seasonal depression can coexist with:
- ADHD
- anxiety
- perfectionism
- burnout
- people pleasing
- trauma histories
- emotional masking
- bipolar disorder
High functioning does not mean unaffected. It means you are really good at coping until you suddenly are not.
When should I see a therapist for seasonal depression?
You do not need to reach a breaking point to reach out. In fact, therapy is most effective when symptoms are beginning or when you notice the early signs returning:
- difficulty waking up
- irritability
- increased fatigue
- loss of motivation
- feeling less connected
- emotional heaviness
- craving isolation
If you have a history of SAD, reaching out in November or early December can help you build a plan before symptoms intensify. Therapy offers space to understand your patterns, reduce shame, and create a sustainable winter support system.
You deserve support before you are in crisis, not only after.
Is SAD something I will deal with forever?
Not necessarily. Many people find that with the right tools, their seasonal symptoms become less intense, shorter lasting, and far more manageable. For others, seasonal patterns remain but become easier to navigate once they understand their biology and build winter specific routines.
Either way, you are not doomed to suffer.
You can learn to support your nervous system in ways that meaningfully change your experience of winter.