If winter blues are getting you down, we have good news: we're officially closer to the spring equinox than we are the winter solstice! The winter solstice marks the shortest day of the year, while the spring equinox (March 20 this year) is the day with equal amounts of daylight and nighttime as we more toward summer. Longer days, more sunlight and warmer temperatures (more conducive to spending time outside) will soon be here.
If the cold, gray days of winter have you feeling down, there are some things you can do to help boost your mood while we wait for the sunshine to return. If the earlier sunset is affecting your sleep, maintaining a consistent sleep schedule can help. Since one way we get Vitamin D, a nutrient essential for emotional regulation, is from sunlight working with the cholesterol in your skin, some people affected by the decreased sunlight in winter can benefit from taking Vitamin D supplements.
Mood and emotional regulation are also some of the processes regulated by the endocannabinoid system, the network of receptors and messengers that regulate many processes and systems within the body. CBD works by mimicking the messengers and influencing these receptors, helping restore homeostasis or balance to your endocannabinoid system. In fact, in a 2019 CBDistillery survey, 88% of CBD users reported that CBD helped with mild or temporary anxiety, and 89% of CBD users reported sleeping better!