When one season rolls into another, our inner landscape needs to recalibrate to the change. Here are some precautionary ways of staying on top of the game.
Micellar water
Winter spells dryness because of the receding humidity levels. Lack of hydration in the skin’s outer layer leads to flakiness. Micellar water is purified water with mild surfactants and glycerin. In short, a miracle worker for dehydrated skin. Dab a bit on the skin to cleanse after a thorough wash. Micellar water is good for all skin types.
Tip: Use this to remove stubborn lipsticks and highly pigmented eye coal.
Natural light
Sun is good all through the year, but when one season rolls into the next, you need extra vitality to stay focused and energised. Natural light aids in regulating blood pressure. It positively impacts the immunity system, as during any seasonal change, your body’s genes that otherwise fight infections, start attacking your own body. So, the common cold can be tackled by your in built immunity mechanism but not serious issues such as arthritis.
Sunlight helps in reducing internal inflammation, thus removing soreness. 20 minutes under the sun is a great place start from.
Tip: Draw not just your curtains each morning, but also open your windows and doors to let every bit of the sun’s rays to permeate.
Power naps
They say you snooze you lose, but we think there’s gain too. Naps are an excellent way, often times, underrated, to allow your body to adjust to change. With seasonal shifts, the anatomy is calibrating all the time. A quick nap will lead to wonderful awakening. Fifteen minutes should be good, to begin with. Sleep boosts immunity and immunity keeps you strong. It’s the mind’s quick way of rebooting.
Tip: If you have trouble napping, try an easy four-seven-eight breathing technique wherein you inhale through the count of four, hold for seven seconds and release on the count of eight. You can use an imaginary distraction to lower the voices in your head too.
Avoid overeating or binge drinking
Eat optimum amounts. As the body is already under strain from the changes in the environment, it doesn’t need the extra task of burning excess calories too. You need to resist emotional eating that could be a result of slight hormonal fluctuations due to shorter days. This phenomenon evokes the brain into instant gratification. If you feel persistently low during seasonal change, especially from summer to winter, it could be Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD). It’s quite the same with overconsumption of alcohol.
Tip: Read about the body’s reward system, a group of neural circuits that are stimulated as soon as it receives a pleasurable trigger, in turn wanting more and more of the same pleasure. Knowledge of how this works will help you gain control over how much you consume.
Exercise
Fluctuations in barometric pressures directly increase joint pain which is why inflammatory conditions become worse during winters. The easiest therapy is exercise which one must start, not after a new season has set in, but two weeks prior. It’ll build your threshold to cope with muscular pain.
Tip: Start with a 10-minute stretching and yoga/aerobic schedule.
Overeating and binge drinking are your biggest banes. Watch out!
If you feel persistently low during seasonal change, especially from summer to winter, it could be Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD). It’s quite the same with overconsumption of alcohol.