The Deception of Spring: Dealing With the Continuation of Winter Blues

Photography: Bethan Evans, @Blodeuwedd.Flower.Face

There is an obvious sort of beauty in the emergence of spring. It is a reminder that all is not lost in winter. Flowers thought to be long gone subtly make their show-stopping reappearances. Pink peonies, daylilies, coneflowers and hollyhock decorate the landscape and remind us that nature always finds a way to be beautiful.

However, the more subtle evil of spring is that we often struggle to come out of our winter blues.

The cold and dark days of winter don’t serve some of us. The winter blues can take their hold and negatively impact how we think of ourselves. So, why don’t we come out of it when spring rolls around and the days get brighter and warmer, the scenery gets prettier, and the birds start singing?

Photography: Bethan Evans, @Blodeuwedd.Flower.Face

The myth that spring is the cure to winter blues does our mental health a disservice. It diminishes the tangible, lasting effect that shorter, darker days can have on us. Mental health is complex, and one-for-all cures can misguide us in the journey of healing.

Mental health is a continuous act of care we gift to ourselves. Expectations often set us up for failure. So be kind to yourself and allow yourself to have bad days, even if the sun is shining. The idea that spring always rids us of winter blues is a mindset that must be subverted. Use the light, beauty of the earth and joy of spring to guide yourself to better mental health, but be gentle with yourself if it doesn’t work as well as you hoped. 

by Allyson Cochran

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(also published in Bloom I05)

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