7 Ways to Overcome Cabin Fever
And how you can turn off the dull moments of frustration into something positive
Do you struggle with your mental health during the winter seasons?
You aren’t alone.
Cabin fever is defined as the irritability, listlessness, and similar symptoms resulting from long confinement or isolation indoors during the winter (Oxford).
Winter depression comes with inactivity, crankiness, sleep loss, and simply feeling down in the dumps (WebMD).
If you want to dig yourself out of a dark pit, here are seven things I do that help me get my mind and my body in check.
1. Go Outside
It seems obvious, doesn’t it? You’re feeling cooped up indoors, so clearly, the best thing you can do is change that.
Regardless of the weather, it’s critical to our mental health to step outside our homes and move around a little.
With work from home, we need to stretch our legs more than just going downstairs for food and back to our bedrooms.
Exercise is free, and there’s no simpler way to do that than going outside. I’ve tried working out in my room, and it simply isn’t motivating enough to maintain, so I force myself to go outside.
Nature has the ability to let us destress and feel better.
2. Talk to Your Friends and Family
One of the major symptoms of cabin fever is the feeling of loneliness.
With modern technology and the ability to message or Zoom call our friends and family, we need to be taking advantage of it. Just because we’re miles apart doesn’t mean we have to stay stuck.
Not everyone has the courage to communicate out of the blue, but it's well worth it once the conversation is initiated.
These are hard times we’re all facing in one way or another and we can be there for each other.
Try to stay connected in some form — chat for a while, play videogames together, something — anything helps. Just don’t spend too much time alone and you’ll feel slightly better.
3. Write!
As a blogger, of course I’m going to advocate for writing. It gives me mental clarity in times of stress and allows me to organize any thoughts I might be having.
You get to uncover your subconscious when you write.
There may be an underlying factor you’re unaware of that’s bothering you. That is until you start writing. Dots start connecting, and you feel like you’re onto something. It’s awesome.
We all need some creative outlet, and even journaling for ten minutes a day will give you the mental clarity you need to keep pushing forward.
You can write about all sorts of things. The most useful things to write about for me personally are lists. I write about what I’m stressed about, what I’m excited about, and what my goals are for the short term as well as the long term.
4. Learn a Brand New Skill
There are tons of resources on the internet nowadays that there’s almost no excuse not to know something.
It’s free to learn as long as you have an internet connection!
You’ll feel far more accomplished after learning something new rather than not. It triggers neurotransmitters in the brain that release a rewarding feeling in your body.
Go out and learn a new language, a new culture, how to beat a video game, how to play chess, how to edit photos, how to cook, literally anything. You are only limited to your imagination.
When you’re inside all day, you may feel hopeless or that there’s nothing to look forward to. But by learning, you keep your mind busy and there are endless opportunities to learn something new.
5. Watch Travel Videos
Something I did prior to the Pandemic was travel a ton. These pressing times make me want to protect everyone close to me, so I don’t travel far.
To make up for the lack of spontaneity or worldly inspiration, I watch tons of travel YouTube videos. Some of my favorite YouTubers include Yes Theory, Sam Kolder, and even David Dobrik’s old vlogs.
You’ll notice an optimistic tingle rush throughout your body and feel some sort of thrill even though you never left your home. Watch one a day, and you might feel a sense of fulfillment.
It takes no more than five minutes to trigger a sense of hope with travel videos.
6. Go for a Drive Once a Day
Unless the weather is really unsafe, I highly recommend going for a drive. It’s a great way to get outside of the house and see what’s going on outside.
The feeling I get when I drive is empowering. It makes me feel like I’m headed somewhere. When trapped inside the house, it’s easy to feel hopeless and that you’re not going anywhere.
Driving from one destination to another triggers a feeling of purpose and (no pun intended), drive.
It would help if you accomplish some errands on your drive as you’ll make the trip worthwhile for you and your mind.
7. Cook Something
Something I started doing ever since winter started was cooking more frequently. It’s another form of a creative outlet that needs to be explored more.
It saves you money when you cook, and you call the shots in the kitchen. The way your food tastes is dependent on yourself and it’s worth trying if you haven’t already.
Cooking for those close to you is even more fulfilling. There’s no better feeling than to see food that you prepared get devoured and enjoyed.
There are tons of videos and recipes online if you’re not exactly chef-savvy.
Final Thought
My deployment helped me prepare for cabin fever and this pandemic because I didn’t have much to do outside of work and stay in.
It’s worth noting that although the world feels upside down, there’s still a lot that’s in our control.
We can only control what’s right in front of us, and with the use of these seven activities, we can get our lives back.
Cabin fever doesn't have to be a point in time where we take steps backward.
Please utilize some of the tips I listed and let me know if they help make a difference!
About the Creator
Jordan Mendiola
Jordan Mendiola is a horizontal construction engineer in the U.S. Army, Mendiola loves hands-on projects and writing inspirational blog posts about health, fitness, life, and investing.
linktr.ee/Jordanmendiola
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By Saboor Brohi 5 days ago in Motivation
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