How I’m Preparing for Winter in a Pandemic
Taking control is helping to alleviate my anxiety about an uncertain future
I always greet the autumnal equinox with an appropriate balance of dread and joy. Autumn is my favorite time of year, after all — by far. I love the chill in the air, the changing colors of the leaves, the sound of the wind rustling through the trees, the countdown to my favorite holiday (Halloween). I love the way my garden shifts from manic productivity to a slow crawl to dormancy, giving me a much-needed break. I love putting extra blankets on my bed and gaining extra darkness at night with which to cuddle up on my sofa and knit while watching something cozy and happy on Netflix.
But…I know what the equinox signals. By the time we turn the clocks back an hour, by the time my favorite holiday is over, there’s no escaping how long the nights have become — and that they are only going to get longer for the next two months.
With my anxiety and depression, the winter months are challenging for me. It’s not that I don’t enjoy them — it can just be hard sometimes to endure the short days, snowstorms, icy roads… And I definitely struggle with Seasonal Affective Disorder.
But I’ve never felt so conflicted about the autumnal equinox as I have this year. This is the first time…
