I’ll Love You This Year, November
November receives the least love of all 12 months of the year. It arrives in mid-autumn, dressed in grey. It stretches out its cold hands and would love to seduce us. Squeezed between the flamboyant colours of October and the shining lights of December, poor November lacks anything interesting or attractive. 30 depressing days lead us so neatly towards the shortest day of the year. What a month!
Here are the steps to take to recover your normal energy level and avoid wallowing in seasonal affected depression (SAD). I’ll love you this year, November.
1- Follow the natural rhythm of the sun
In November, we literally lack light. The sun appears less and less, it loses its shine, and it sets early and rises late. Naturally, we are affected by its rhythm. We instinctively try to follow its lead. The good news is that this is the best thing to do. Following the natural rhythm of the sun is the best way for our bodies to face this passing depression in November. We tend to want to sleep in to recover, but this has the opposite effect, and can amplify symptoms of seasonal affected depression. We recommend following the footsteps of Mister Sun: Climb out of bed at the same time the sun rises, and be as active as possible during daylight hours. Changing your schedule to go outside during your lunch break and absorb some sun is something to seriously consider.
2- Schedule a lymphatic drainage massage
Fatigue and low energy appear at this time of year, so this is the time to invest in your well-being by scheduling a revitalizing cure: a lymphatic drainage massage. Considered an integral part of therapeutic treatment, it stimulates, restarts, and accelerates circulation of the lymph, that clear liquid linked to ganglion activity that many vital functions depend upon for cellular detoxification, fat removal, and immune system strengthening. After this massage, you will feel a new, light, sensation and increased vitality. Lymphatic drainage is like a fine-tuning session before winter to shed toxins and strengthen your immune system. Give yourself this gift to face the flu season safely.
3- Try weightlessness
Close your eyes and imagine: You are floating in an enormous salt water pool carved into the rock. You are surrounded by calmness. You are experiencing the physical and mental escape so widely sought after. Filled with 12% Epsom salt water, the Källa pool offers the extraordinary sense of floating. The benefits of the Dead Sea are only a few minutes from downtown Ottawa-Gatineau. Floating in the salt water provides many benefits for both the body and the mind. It stimulates blood circulation, purifies the body, encourages restful sleep, accelerates healing, and reduces stress. Are you having trouble sleeping? An hour in the Källa pool is the same as four hours of sleep. Give yourself a gift before the holiday season, and schedule yourself a Källa treatment!
4- Move around
During this intense period of cocooning and grey days, you have to move around. Don’t underestimate the benefits of physical activity on your mood. You need it. Physical exercise has been shown to produce an immediate antidepressant effect by increasing physiological rates of certain neurotransmitters, such as endorphins, which have a positive effect on mood. The good news is that a couple of minutes of exercise every day is enough to obtain this beneficial effect. Use the month of November to add physical activity to your schedule. Walk, use an exercise bike, or play Wii games with the kids – even that counts. Many training apps or videos are helpful to move around at night or during a gloomy day. There are no good excuses, only solutions and alternatives. Vary your activity and exercise with family or friends; this breaks routine and helps restore your good mood! It’s the perfect way to thumb your nose at November and feel as well as you did in June! On your mark, get set, go!
5- Nourish yourself with the energy of others
Plan meet-ups. Take the lead and suggest a day out with your friends. It’s true that we all lead very busy lives, but we should take the time to see each other to nourish ourselves with the energy of our friends and loved ones. Laughing, talking, or sharing a meal improves our lives. Take Sunday afternoon to bake cookies for the holidays, share a bottle of wine over an evening of gossip, wander through a forest all bundled up. It doesn’t have to be anything complicated; simply being together and creating occasions that make us so happy are greatly beneficial to us. Better to live surrounded by others than alone. Socializing goes hand-in-hand with feeling healthy.
November is changing its mission this year: It’s the Month of Me. Become the master of your health and well-being. Give yourself the tools to feel better.