Nurturing ourselves this winter
As regular readers will know I have seasonal affective disorder (SAD) and this year with the added stress of the pandemic it’s been a bit like dealing with winter on steroids! A whole other layer of crazy! As such I thought it may be a good time to revisit the blog I wrote on hygge last winter as I think nurturing ourselves is needed more than ever right now. I have friends and clients struggling with winter who’ve never had an issue with it before.
I manage my SAD in a variety of ways, one of which is to have an intentional list of the things I can enjoy and look forward to over winter. This list includes fully embracing the idea of hygge. I have a lovely book, The Little Book of Hygge – The Danish Way to Live Well by Meik Wiking. The introduction begins, “Hooga? Hhyooguh? Heurgh? It’s not important how you choose to pronounce or even spell ‘hygge’. To paraphrase one of the greatest philosophers of our time – Winnie-the-Pooh – when asked how to spell a certain emotion, ‘You don’t spell it, you feel it.’”
Wiking goes on to say that “hygge is about an atmosphere and an experience, rather than about things.” As I write this I’ve created a very cosy atmosphere. I’m on my sofa under a faux fur throw. I’m wearing warm, comfortable clothes and have a hot rooibos red chai tea in one of my favourite mugs. A lovely scented candle is burning and the fairy lights are on. I feel safe, warm and relaxed.
I took my Christmas decorations down on 5th January. The thought, as usual, filled me with a quiet dread. Christmas over and at least two more months of winter weather and low light levels to contend with. But I was determined to create a hygge atmosphere even without the help of Christmas decorations. As well as the aforementioned faux fur throw I have lots of candles and I’ve swapped my Christmas cushion covers for the softest faux fur. There’s a cosy wool throw on my second sofa, lots of fairy lights and I kept out the candle holders that were winter, rather than Christmas themed. By the time all the Christmas decorations were away I sat down in the candle lit room with a well-earned mulled wine and felt thoroughly cosy.
When I shared my list for an intentional winter in December I asked what you loved about winter and time after time the answer was the cosiness. I’ve definitely achieved that this year. Don’t get me wrong, I’ve had days when the SAD has made it’s presence strongly felt. We had eight straight days with no sun at all and I really felt it. But I know that between the hygge, self-care and being as intentional as possible it won’t get the upper hand. Already the mornings and evenings are getting just that little bit lighter.
My intentional winter list includes:
Decorating for winter and making the house as cosy as possible after Christmas.
A winter walk in the nature reserve.
Wearing sequins in January and February (sequins are not just for Christmas parties people!)
Appreciating the first signs of snowdrops, crocuses and daffodils.
Learning to cook a new seasonal recipe.
Enjoying winter scented candles.
Lots of fairy lights.
How would being more intentional at this time of year improve your life? How would it help you to deal with the current stress and restrictions?
As I revisited the above blog I had to edit it. There were things that I did to support myself through last January that I just can’t do this year. I could dwell on that but instead I choose to focus on what I can do and I can still enjoy everything that the great outdoors has to offer. I can still put on my red sequin hat and get outside in the fresh air and I can still come back home to hot, frothy coffee spiced with cinnamon.
Another great way to nurture yourself this winter would be to join my free five day Grow Your Confidence Challenge which I’m hosting in my private facebook group from 11th to 15th January.
It’s my mission to help at least 1,000 women to unlock your confidence this year so that you can change your life. After the year we’ve all just had I think that building our confidence is more important than ever!
This challenge is for you if:
✔There are things you dream of doing if only you felt more confident
✔You want to boost your self-belief
✔You’re ready to feel more in control of your own life setting healthy boundaries for yourself and others
✔You want to feel supported by other women
even if you’re super busy, feeling overwhelmed, stressed or totally uninspired by life right now!
I’ve deliberately designed the challenge with busy women in mind. There will be a short five to ten minute video to watch each morning setting the day's task. The task itself will be something that you can fit into your day with relative ease. Then I pop into the group live each evening to answer questions, offer extra insights and cheer you on!
The Sunday following the challenge everyone who fully engaged with every task will be entered into a prize draw and two lucky people will win a one-to-one coaching session with me worth £150.
Click here to secure your free place now.
Sandra, commented in my Facebook group saying that she’d been successful at a job interview and “I couldn’t have done this without the belief in myself that came from your challenge. So really it’s not such a small thank you, it’s a life changing one.”
This is what some other participants have had to say about the challenge:
“Following the five day challenge I finally began to understand that the best way to be there for my family and work was to prioritise me for a proportion of my day. After all I did it for everything else in my life – why not me? Focusing on what makes me happy has put a bit of sparkle in my life making me happier, more productive and confident too! Clare has helped me massively in a very short space of time.” – Rebecca
“Thanks for running the challenge. I loved your friendly presence and encouragement in the group. The tasks were the right length for me to be able to engage and I enjoyed listening to the evening chats.
Clare has a compassionate and easy style making each person feel important and listened to, taking time to comment personally on each contribution. If you want this gentle yet personal support in your life Clare is the person to work with. Look out for her next five day challenge and see for yourself the difference it can make.” - Jeannette
Why not give yourself the gift of five days growing your confidence? Who knows – it could be life changing for you too! You have nothing to lose and everything to gain! You get my skills, knowledge and expertise as a confidence coach free for five whole days. One woman even joined Facebook just to do the challenge last time I ran it!
Even if you’ve done it before I’d encourage you to sign up again and remind yourself of those healthy habits and give yourself the opportunity to go even deeper this time.
Here’s the link you need to sign up. Feel free to share it with your friends and family too! Let’s start as we mean to go on, nurture ourselves and get this 2021 confidence revolution started!
