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Hi everyone,

The cold has arrived. If you were not aware, I thrive in warm weather. It is what I am used to. I’ve lived in hot places all my life: Colombia, Brazil, and California. Therefore, winter for me is 40 degrees at most. I have never lived in weather below 40. I’ve never lived in the snow. I’ve only seen the snow two times in my life. Once when I was eight and again last year. It is so cold out. The sun is hardly out. All I want to do is stay inside and sleep. I’m seriously this close to Googling how to perform witch rituals and spells that make the sun and the warmth come back faster. This weather is really getting to me.

As if the cold was not bad enough, finals seasons are approaching and the work load is humongous. I have 5 essays due the week after Thanksgiving break and two of those have to be 5 – 7 pages and unmotivated, little Mari has started none of it.

Furthermore, this gloomy weather has made me keep my “sad, acoustic music” playlist on replay and thus my “off days” have become more frequent. (My sad playlist features a whole lot of Bon Iver and Novo Amor.) Seasonal Depression is a thing, y’all. But mental health is crucial, so here is how I have been attempting to keep my happiness levels up:

 

1. Surrounding myself with people: I get all up in my thoughts when I’m alone. I also get really lonely when my roommate isn’t home for long periods of time. After all, I was raised in very tight-knit household, therefore I am used to being surrounded by loving people for long periods of time. Therefore, in order to not feel lonely I try to surround myself with people I enjoy being around. Sometimes I do need alone time as well, so know how to manage that.
2. Listen to happy music: I have been blasting throwbacks whenever I feel that winter sadness creeping up on me. High School Musical, Camp Rock, Hannah Montana, etc… Those have all been on repeat in my dorm room.
3. Call your loved ones: Something I really miss is speaking my native language: Spanish. I have yet to find native Spanish speakers. Therefore, I try to call my family every now and then to feel at home and feel the comfort of the Spanish language naturally rolling off my tongue.
4. Eat comfort food: I can’t tell you how many soft serve ice cream cones and Oreos I have eaten in college. They make me happy, okay? Mental health first, right?
5. Work out: I have been running in the treadmill lately and I have been feeling that runner’s high that people talk about. It’s real, you do get happy from running. It’s so weird.
6. Schedule your work: I make to-do list’s to keep track of my work. It just gets me even more stressed if I don’t have homework done. Furthermore, checking off tasks and assignments from that to-do list makes you feel accomplished and motivated.
7. Go out: It’s extremely cold outside, but I love nature and I love feeling the air on my skin. Therefore, I try to still go out even though I look like a marshmallow wearing 500 layers. I try to avoid staying inside for long periods of time.
8. Practice positivity: Just be positive, it works. Waking up and putting a smile on your face psychologically makes you feel happy.

 

Don’t let the cold, gloomy weather get you down! Don’t let midterms and long papers get you down! We can get through this! Spring is just 4 – 6 months away, depending on when it decides to come back. Hopefully it will be back by March, but I heard that sometimes it stays cold all the way until April. Yikes. But positivity! Hopefully, the flowers will starting blooming by March. *fingers crossed*