Winter Dreaming
The drop in temperature over the last couple days here in Dublin has made it clear that winter has finally arrived! And what better day to welcome it than Full Moon?!
Winter is a time of year that many people find quite difficult. Many are affected by SAD (Seasonal Affective Disorder), a label given to those that get depressed from ‘the change of season’. A definition given by MedlinePlus (an online information service produced by the United States National Library of Medicine) is “some people experience a serious mood change when the seasons change. They may sleep too much, have little energy, and may also feel depressed. Though symptoms can be severe, they usually clear up.”
A lot of this upset, pain and suffering are actually the result of us being so out of tandem with our natural inclination at this time of year- or more specifically the guilt and shame that comes up for feeling exactly as you are meant to feel at this time of year. In my experience, it is these feelings that you are ‘not the norm’, that you are not being as you are ‘supposed’ to be, that cause the depression rather than the weather.
The collective consciousness promotes the idea we must all be going ‘full throttle’ at all times, no matter how we feel or what season it is. This constant push and stress we live with breeds ‘disorders’ within ourselves. And they are just that: disorder- being out of order with our natural state.
Winter time was traditionally a time to retreat, go within, to hibernate. Just look at our fellow animals- they all go into their caves and rest up for the season or fly away to sunny climes. And those that don’t fully hibernate are certainly not out and about like they would be in the warmer months.
Instead of feeling bad that you want to sleep more, that you want to be inside, that you want to be alone; embrace those feelings! Winter is a time for sleeping and dreaming. It is the time of year that plants are sleeping underground, gathering energy so that they can reach their beautiful potential in spring and summer. Then autumn arrives and they start to retreat back to the earth and next winter will, once again, go to sleep to gather energy so the cycle will start again.
Those of us living in countries that have the true four seasons are lucky. Nature gives us clear signs of how to proceed to keep ourselves at optimal health and wellbeing.
In winter, the days are short and the nights are long. This is nature’s way of showing us to get more sleep. To use this opportunity to dream up what we want for the future. To reflect on what has happened throughout the past year, let go of what we don’t need, inform ourselves what we want for the coming year and imagine how to achieve those goals. As Ralph Ellison beautifully puts it in Invisible Man:
Embrace the hibernation time! Save your energy. Get the sleep you need. Eat nourishing soups and broths filled with tasty, seasonal, vegetables. Replenish your beautiful bodies. Allow yourself to truly rest and recuperate. And feel good doing it! The solstice will come in December, marking the shortest day of the year, and so the time for socialising will once again be upon us as we celebrate the beginning of the cycle back to the longest day. Until then, allow yourself to enjoy this time for hibernation.
Listen to nature, listen to your Self and ignore the mass consciousness thoughts of guilt and ‘shoulds’. Nurture and treat yourself with kindness. Winter is that magical time of year where we are encouraged to take the time to dream. So sleep soundly and dream big!
With love and light,
Laura.x
3 comments on “Winter Dreaming”
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Resounding Power 
Lovely post. Keen of you to tap into people’s guilt and shame. Keep up the beautiful blogging and thank you for the follow, Laura. =)
Diana
Thank you so much for the comment, Diana. It is much appreciated- especially as I love your posts so much!x
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