Black Girl’s Guide to Overcome The “SADs”
Foreword: Yoga has 3 parts: movement, breath, and mind. The 3 parts of yoga have one AIM, to help you prevent mental and physical illness, and protect the body. Yoga is the simplest way to raise to your highest potential, not in the future, but right now.
Change makes us feel powerless, leaving a gap for violence in the mind. Is it due to our inability to accept change that we are plagued with Seasonal Affective Disorder aka “The Seasonal SAD”?
Married to the blaze, the glow, the energy of the sun, once we see less of it, naturally, we may feel sad, loss of energy, and lack of interest in events and activities that, weeks before, excited us.
There is truth that Fall brings the harvest; time for us to reap the benefits of our labor and prepare for the winter stillness. However, this inevitable season does not need to bring depressive symptoms, insomnia, or the mounting question of whether you are going to be ok.
The AIMwell Team worked to build a guide to working with yourself during the SADs within Wellness Spaces:
Create a SADs Group.
Ok, this isn’t exactly what the community said in response to our survey on what people do to relieve the SADs, but stretching is what I do 💭
Community and Routine is critical to combat the SADs. It is easy for me to say “create a yoga practice,” but creating and the SADs don’t always go hand in hand. Instead, start small and notice those around you who could be in your “SADs Group.” This is not an actual group, but people you feel comfortable with asking to hang out, or sharing a funny gif or meme with during times that you feel low.
2. Ground and Routine
It may seem obvious, but it needs to be said. A routine will keep you accountable to something more than your momentary SADness. Seasonal Affective Disorder brings the opportunity to create the routine of your dreams.
Think about it: you get the excuse, “looks like it’s getting late, I should get going…” even though it’s literally 5:37 pm. This is your time to hit that late night sauna session your friends told you about. Buy that new set of comfy PJs and catch up on your favorite shows. Hit up Discord and engage with the online community. Reclaim control by reclaiming areas of your life; ground into a routine that works.
3. Lighting Changes
Hear me out… when the seasons change, so do we.
Our biological clocks… yes, the same one that tells us it’s time to move through stages of life, also is involved with more mundane tasks, such as - mood regulation, sleep and hormones. Daylight shifts our biological clock and we need to work with it by shifting things we can control.
If you know you are prone to the SADs you may prepare yourself ahead of time. Simplest way is to Let the Light Out. When the sun is out, go to that window that cascades its rays along the floor and remain there for a few long moments. Like 50 breaths.
Other ways to soak up more Vitamin D:
Open up the shades in your space to let as much light in during the time it’s out
Rearrange your furniture so you are hit in the face with sunlight the moment it rises
Find spaces in your community that has ultra bright corners that you can soak in for a while
Of course, you can buy LED lights online or go to a Dermatologist… however if health insurance utilization and buying another thing is not in your scope, explore something natural.
Humans adjusted to this change as long as we have been on this tilted axis. We can’t fight the seasons; we can learn to flow within them.
I think this one is my favorite because it forces us to face the reality that we must change to continuously thrive in an most environments. That change is often inconvenient.
4. DM that studio you’ve been eyeing.
Here is the honest truth: unless you exclusively flow at the big box chain studios that have 4 levels of social media approval, the Yoga Studio’s latest post you double tapped last week was made by the owner or studio manager.
A real person who is really ready to engage with the community. Message them to explore what class would be the best class/ service to start with based on your SADS-Needs.
This message may be, “Hey, I love your page and want to try out your classes! Do you have any recommendations on how to get started at your studio?”
For real, I bet if you DM’d AIMwell this right now, you’d be gifted with an unexpected surprise!
Let us remember, we practice yoga to better catch - pause - choose our next moment….even through the SADs. Hopefully, elements of this post are helpful! If so, drop your favorite tip below.
