Image by josef.stuefer.
“In the depths of winter I finally learned there was in me an invincible summer.”
Albert Camus
It’s really dark here in Sweden right now.
The town I grew up in had 23 minutes of sunlight last month. Not 23 minutes of sunlight on a dreary December day but 23 minutes during the whole month. The rest was just cloudy, rainy and dark skies.
The weather can have quite an effect during such dreary times. I definitely am sleeping more now than a few months ago. But I also feel that the winter doesn’t wield as much power over me as it did a few years ago.
Here are five things that I have done to boost my energy and mood during the darkest months. If you live in place were the sunlight seems to have gone on vacation then maybe you can something good out of these tips too.
1. Exercise.
As Arnold says, exercise releases anxiety and tension within you. I like to lift weights a couple of time a week and the boosts of energy, testosterone and other hormones I get from lifting has a big effect. I feel stronger and more relaxed. It keeps me from getting lost in over thinking and doubts. For me, it’s probably the most important of these five factors.
2. Focus on the good stuff.
If you focus on the rain and darkness it will expand within your mind. It will feel even worse and have more power over you. There is no need to go there though. Keep your focus on your work, on your hobbies, on relaxing, on family and friends etc. Expand the good stuff inside your mind and pay little attention to the dreary things.
3. Meditate.
I have been using Paraliminals, a form of guided meditations on CDs, to boost my mood and energy for quite a while. My favourite during the last few months has been Perfect Health. I’ve been listening to that one about 2-3 times a week. It only takes 20 minutes but it always seems to give me a positive boost in mood and energy. I have also used it more intensely twice this winter when I’ve felt a cold coming on. Both times it resulted in just a sore throat for a few days compared to the full-blown cold that I usually get.
I haven’t tried more “normal” meditations but from what I have read it seems like most forms of mediation – if used consistently – will result in a better and more stable mood and higher energy levels.
4. Change your environment.
This is a bit of an odd suggestion I suppose but I think it has had a small effect on me. The basic idea that I have written about before is that your environment has a big impact on you. So you can change your environment to change yourself.
I am for instance using summer-like wallpaper for my laptop with two people swimming in a beautiful warm, blue ocean. While the weather outside the window might be bad, the weather inside my laptop is awesome. And that has a small positive emotional effect.
You can of course expand on this to make much of your environment more spring or summer-like. A few suggestions off the top of my head:
- Change the posters and the stuff you have on the walls.
- Brighten up your home and workspace with more light and redecorate with light colors.
- Use more flowers and other living things.
- Install brighter light bulbs.
And do your own brainstorm on how you can make your environment more uplifting.
5. Enjoy the remaining daylight.
Spend as much time as you can in the remaining daylight. Go for a walk or a run. Let as much sunlight as possible flow into your workspace and home.
What are your best tip for lifting yourself out of the darkness of winter?
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译文:
5种方法让你走出冬日的阴霾
Image by josef.stuefer.
“深冬赶不走我心中的夏日”
阿尔伯特·加缪
此时的瑞典真的是一片黑暗。
我生长的小镇在上个月只享受了23分钟的阳光。这并不是说在这个阴郁的12月份的某天有那么23分钟阳光露脸了，而是在这整整一个月中我们总共只看见了23分钟的阳光。其他的时间天空总是乌云密布，潮湿阴沉。
这种天气让所有的人都情绪低落。我的睡眠时间比起前几个月显著增多。但是，冬天带给我的影响倒不像前几年那样强烈了。
在这个阴冷的时节，为了打起精神来，我尝试了5种方法。如果你居住的地方阳光也吝于露面，也许你也可以试试。
1.运动。
正如阿诺德所说，运动能够缓解人们内在的紧张情绪和压力。我喜欢每周做两次举重练习。这项运动能够很好的帮助人们振奋精神，刺激人体分泌出更多的睾丸素及其他激素。这让我觉得自己更加强壮，更加放松，不再耽于胡思乱想，也不会总是疑虑重重。对我来说，运动是这5种方法中最重要的一项。
2.把思想集中在有益的事情上。
如果你总在留意阴雨和阴沉的天气，它们就会充斥你的思想，让你倍感低落。其实没有必要老去想它们。把你的注意力集中在工作，爱好，休闲，家庭或者朋友等等事情上面。让有益的思想占据你的头脑，赶走所有让人低落的事情。
3.冥想。
我一直在用Paraliminals，一张冥想CD.它帮我调节情绪振作精神。最近几个月我最着迷的是“完美健康”。每周我都会听两到三遍。虽然只有短短的20分钟，但它真的能对我的情绪产生非常正面的影响，让我充满活力。在这个冬天，每当我感到寒流袭来就会更热切的多听上两遍。这让我不再像以前一样动辄重感冒了，顶多只是喉咙痛上几天。
我没有再尝试其他更为“普遍”的冥想，但是，通过对它的研究，我了解到，只要能够坚持进行，大多数的冥想都能让你的情绪更加稳定，精力更加充沛。
4.改变你的周边环境
我想这个建议听上去有点奇怪，不过它还是有一定的作用的。前面我所写内容的前提是--周边的环境对你造成很大的影响。所以你可以通过改变周边的环境来达到改变自己的目的。
例如，我笔记本电脑的背景画面是两个人在美丽温暖而蔚蓝的大海中畅游，充满了夏日的气息。也许窗外的天气非常糟糕，但是在我的笔记本里可是风和日丽。这种变化就会带给我一种微微振奋的感觉。
当然，你可以创造更多春日或夏日的氛围。最先浮现在我脑海中的主意有：
-
更换墙壁上原有的海报和装饰。
- 改善家里和工作间的光线，也可以将房间重新装修成暖色调。
- 多接触鲜花或其他有活力的东西。
- 装上更为明亮的灯泡。
开动脑筋，改造周边的环境，让它更加令人振奋。
5.享受仅有的日光
尽量多接触日光。走出去，散个步或者跑上一段。尽可能的让你的工作间和家沐浴在阳光中。
摆脱冬日的阴霾，你的建议是什么？
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