Anxious about Autumn?
It’s Fall Y’all! The leaves are crunching, the bonfires are glowing, and the pumpkins are spicing. This all seems like the start to a magical time of the year. So why are so many of us terrified of spooky season?!
If you just cringed at the thought of busting out your boots and flannels, you’re not alone. Fall can be amazing for all the things I mentioned above. But for some, it also means shorter days with less sunlight. Colder weather can mean more alone time and isolation. A new school year means readjustments to schedules and changes yet again. And fall signals the start of the holiday season, which not everyone is thrilled about. If any of these sound like you or someone you know, don’t worry, you aren’t just a hater of all things fall and autumn anxiety is more real than the imaginary monsters in your favorite scary movie!
Signs of Autumn Anxiety
Increased sleepiness or low energy levels
No, your body is not preparing for hibernation!
More worry about things in general
And not about someone wearing the same costume as you to the Halloween party
Increased irritability or frustration
About things other than your fantasy football team most recent loss
Low mood or depression
Ok, but WHY?
There are a few reasons why you may be feeling your anxiety ramp up. Maybe you had an amazing summer and are feeling the inevitable coming down from all that fun. Maybe the changing weather is forcing you indoors more than you were used to over the summer. Or maybe the shorter days means less access to sunshine.
Most of us are familiar with the SAD or Seasonal Affective Disorder. For some, those autumn anxieties signal the onset of it, even if we’re not quite aware as it may be showing up a little different now than it does come winter. Either way, a changing of seasons may trigger some anticipation of anxieties to come for all the reasons mentioned above. This increased worry and feeling overwhelmed may start as your brain starts to recognize signs that winter is coming and the SAD blues.
If you’ve ever done a session with me, you’ll hear me say quite often that no emotion is a “bad” emotion. Anxiety can actually be quite useful as it signals us to prepare for something. Even if you’re not quite sure what you’re preparing for, our brain works on associations. Leaves falling, pumpkins, football; all of these may act as signals to your brain that following these things comes cold weather, increased sadness, and an overall bleh feeling. So your brain starts to worry. Good job, brain, you’re trying to get our butts in gear to prepare for hard times ahead!
What can we do?!
Well the first step is to be aware. If any of these things have popped up for you and you’re here reading this article, you are increasing your awareness. These different emotions come up for a reason at any given moment and they want our attention because it means they’re doing their job to help us. Besides acknowledgement, there are a few good changes or additions we can make that will hopefully help ease some of this overwhelming stress.
Plan ahead! If you loved your schedule in the summer and looked forward to all the activities to come, let's try to do the same for fall and winter, especially before you lose motivation. Over the years, I’ve learned that, for me, the winters that are the easiest are the ones where I have at least one fun thing to look forward to each month. This doesn’t have to be anything major. For me, it has to be affordable so I’m not stressed about spending additional money during holiday months. It has to be accessible so it’s not causing more anxiety about just doing the activity. And it has to involve people I want to spend time with vs those that I may feel obligated to. This goes for spending time with myself too!
If the holidays are part of the pending doom, start thinking of ways to firm up boundaries now. This can mean boundaries on your budget and making a plan of what money goes where and how much. It can be boundaries on your time and deciding where you will be and how much access to you others are allowed to have. Or it can be boundaries on topics of conversation. Not sure where to start, check out my other blog post all about boundaries during the holidays here!
Work with the changes! Normally you go for a run after work, but now by the time you get home, the sun is already slipping away. Can you try shifting your schedule to go for a walk at lunch while the sun is still out? What about starting your day a little later and having a morning run instead? If you have a lightbox that you love during the winter, let's not wait until it’s glaringly cold, bust it out now! Chances are, there’s room for change or shifts to happen, but sometimes those options can get lost in the shuffle.
Acknowledge the possibility of positive
Even with the scariness of the approaching season, I’ll always promote a reframe that hopefully will lead to viewing a problem with fresh eyes. Yes, summer is at an end, but new seasons mean new opportunities.
Many of us may associate fall as a time of change that goes back to childhood and the start of a new school year with new friends and experiences. There’s some new motivation there to start the school year off “right”. Can you draw on that excitement and start those projects you’ve been putting off because summer was calling? Or lean into the consistency that a new school year represents for schedules and enjoy the predictability of it all that allows for planning. Maybe you’re ready to snuggle into your sweatpants and hoodies, letting go of the pressure that summer clothing can oftentimes present.
Cooler weather can also mean clearer minds. If you’ve found it hard to focus throughout the summer with all the heat, now’s the time to have some relief and clarity. Finally, with that newfound focus, hopefully you can acknowledge your own resilience. You’ve made it through many fall and winter seasons so far and will continue to do so! Can you give yourself credit for what you’ve accomplished and embrace your own strength?
Autumn is a time for harvesting. My hope is that you can allow time to harvest your memories of time’s past and save them for the harder days ahead. Focus on the positive experiences you’ve had so far and how they’ve helped shape you. Acknowledge the difficult memories and recognize the growth and strength that has come from them, as well as lessons learned. Just because autumn can bring anxiety, doesn’t mean it can’t also bring awakening.
Last, but not least, if you’re not already connected to a therapist and you’ve had it on your to do list for a while, now’s a great time to reach out to one! You’re not alone in dreading fall and you don’t need to struggle alone either.
