Wintering: The Psychological Importance of a "Season of Rest"

We live in a culture where output is expected to be consistent all year round. Regardless of the season, energy, focus, and motivation should remain high. As such, it's easy to assume something is wrong when it isn't.

Winter exposes that gap. With colder, shorter days and routines changing, people often feel slower, more tired, and less motivated. That change often gets labeled as “the winter blues” or Seasonal Affective Disorder. However, those experiences aren't the whole story.

There’s another way to understand what’s happening: wintering.

A term popularized by Katherine May, wintering refers to accepting that life moves in cycles mentally and emotionally. There are some periods for growth and expansion, and others for rest, reflection, and recovery. It's important to remember that winter isn't a waste of time.

You're not failing or falling behind if you feel less motivated right now. Perhaps your body and mind are simply asking for a slower pace. Rest isn’t the opposite of productivity. For many people, it's the key to long-term well-being.

The Biological Blueprint of Rest

We need to examine our biology to understand why we crave a slower pace during winter. Humans have been tethered to the sun for thousands of years. As the days shortened, our activity levels decreased.

As a result of decreased sunlight, our bodies produce more melatonin (the sleep hormone) and less serotonin (the mood hormone). Rather than being a "glitch," this is a biological signal designed to conserve energy. Our reaction to this signal is to combat it by shaming ourselves for wanting to sleep an extra hour or caffeinating through exhaustion.

As a result of this friction, burnout occurs. In reframing the winter period as a season of rest, we align our expectations with our biological reality, reducing the stress that comes from trying to act like a summer person in a winter environment.

Reframing "Unproductivity" as "Internal Growth"

The biggest obstacle to healthy wintering is our cultural obsession with visible results. It feels like we're wasting time if we don't accomplish something, like a project at work, a clean house, or a fitness goal.

In winter, however, think about the forest. Everything looks dead above the frost line. Under the soil, though, the roots are growing deeper. During winter, they store nitrogen, process lessons from the previous year, and prepare for spring's explosive growth.

Psychological wintering works the same way.

In other words, this is a season for internalized growth. For some, this might look like:

• Deep reflection. Reflecting and processing the past year's grief, changes, or triumphs.

• Consolidation. Applying skills and lessons you've learned during your "busy" season.

• Imagination. Often, the best creative ideas are born when your mind is allowed to wander without the pressure of a deadline.

By allowing yourself to be "unproductive" on the outside, you are preparing yourself for your next great season of activity.

The Architecture of a Restful Season

How can we practice wintering without falling into hopeless isolation? Rather than passively hiding, it requires active resting.

Radical acceptance of the "low-power mode."

Instead of waking up and thinking, "I have no energy; what's wrong with me?" try saying, "My body is in winter mode today. What is the most important thing I can do with the energy I have?" Understanding your current capacity is the first step in coming out of the "shame spiral" that often occurs during winter.

Sensory sheltering.

Winter is a time of sensory deprivation -- the colors are muted, the air is thin, and the world is quiet. We can take advantage of this by 'sheltering' our nervous systems. Instead of digital noise (doomscrolling), tactile, grounding experiences would be more effective.

Creating "slack" in the schedule.

If your summer schedule had ten tasks a day, your winter schedule should have four. It's not laziness; it's pacing. The more slack you create in your daily life, the more bandwidth your brain has for processing emotions and resting deeply.

Wintering as a Collective Act

In the winter, isolation is one of the greatest risks to mental health. Wintering doesn't have to be a solo endeavor, however. Winter has been the season of the hearth throughout history. Having finished the "work" of the fields, the time was ripe for storytelling, long meals, and community bonding.

By shifting our social expectations in the winter, we can reclaim this. Rather than an exhilarating night out, try low-stakes togetherness instead.

• The shared table. Spending time with close friends over simple, slow-cooked meals.

• The parallel rest. Having someone over just to watch a movie or read. Performance is not required.

The Danger of the "Perpetual Summer"

If we refuse to winter, what will happen? There will eventually be a catastrophic crash if we try to maintain a "perpetual summer." Athletes know that "overtraining" leads to injuries. The same is true for high-performance minds.

Burnout can be prevented by taking a "season of rest". The more you honor the darkness and the cold, the more energy you will have when spring finally arrives.

By re-framing winter, we're not saying we love the cold; we're saying we respect the cycle. In other words, it's about understanding that you are a biological being, not a digital being. After all, we were designed to ebb and flow.

Conclusion: Trusting the Cycle

Winter is not a time of unproductivity. It's a period of essential preparation. Despite the grey skies this month, don't let the cold get you down. Basically, it's getting rid of whatever doesn't serve the garden anymore. It forces the world to slow down. And it invites you to do the same.

Allow yourself to be dormant. Your projects can sit for a while. Take a break from your ambition. It won't take long for the sun to return, and the ground will thaw. Right now, your only task is to stay warm, nourish yourself, and trust that your "season of rest" will be the most productive part of your life.

A Personal Wintering Audit

To help you reframe your season, ask yourself these three questions:

1. Is there something I'm forcing right now that would be easier to accomplish in the spring?

2. Would I be able to ignore one "output" until March or April?

3. What "internal growth" (reflection, learning, rest) am I ignoring in favor of visible productivity?