Blue Monday
The third Monday of January is nationally known as ‘Blue Monday’ and supposedly is the most depressing day of the year. It’s been three weeks since New Year’s, and Christmas is now out of sight. Here are just a few simple ways you can try to improve your ‘Blue Monday’, and make it a bit more positive!
Cooking something new:
A great way to distract yourself from the miserable weather this time of year is to get stuck into a new recipe in the kitchen! For me, cooking a meal from scratch is one of the most fun things that you can do, experimenting with flavours to create a perfect dish for you. Even if you’ve never cooked before, now is as good a time as ever to give it a go! Try making some pasta with a homemade sauce, for a nice warming dish this evening!
Exercise:
Sheffield is one of the greenest cities in the UK with over 2 million trees throughout the city. Getting out and exploring the city is a great way to get over Blue Monday. Whether it is a walk or a run, Sheffield has a great mixture of old industrial architecture as well as the famous Peak District to find. Get out and get lost in the city!
Animal Therapy:
Who doesn’t love seeing animals? Sheffield has an abundance of cat cafes such as Tabby Teas on the edge of the city centre which is a great place to go to forget what’s going on around you! The City Farm in Heely as well is another great place to see a wide range of animals for cheap and is a great day out with some friends.
Planning Ahead:
For me, a great way to get around feeling stressed and worried is planning and timetabling my next few weeks. This is a great way to put your work life in check, so you can figure out ways to have more social time. Write out your university timetable and fill in your weekly timetable. It is an easy way to see what free time you have and can eliminate stressful thoughts that you’ve not got enough time.
Finding support if you need it:
However, it may not just be Blue Monday that has you feeling particularly bad. If it is more of an ongoing issue, I would recommend talking to the Hallam Help Support Team on hallamhelp@shu.ac.uk. From experience, the team are quick to respond to any issue, no matter how big or small. From here you can set meetings and appointments to help combat whatever issues you’re currently facing. You can also access online support from the team here.
I hope this blog helps give you a few ideas on how to get through the most depressing day of the year, and I hope you have a great day today!
Written by Adam Westwood
Illustrations by Laura Dowson @fancythatillu
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