“Happy New Year”, people say. But for some, happiness doesn’t seem to arrive in January. Instead, feelings of depression often take its place. If you’re among those who suffer from the January Blues and wonder why, this article is for you. Discover 5 science-based reasons behind the January Blues phenomenon and learn how to tackle your January depression. Get practical recommendations on how to feel better by resetting your circadian clock, managing your dopamine levels, and regaining financial stability after the holiday season.
“Ahhh, January 2024 is finally here! A new beginning, a fresh start, a brand new me…”.
A few weeks ago, perhaps at the Christmas dinner or the New Year’s party, many of us were filled with excitement and expectations of what the new year may bring. Goals have been set and resolutions made. “This year I’m going to make it happen!”
A few days into January, however, it is not uncommon for the ‘high’ of feeling motivated and inspired to be replaced with the ‘low’ of feeling overwhelmed, anxious, and exhausted, sometimes even depressed. “Why am I so depressed in January?” we may ask ourselves.
January is sometimes referred to as the most depressing month of the year, the ultimate ‘Blue Monday’, the champion of ‘Money Hangovers’. Even though there are logical explanations and realistic reasons for us to feel low in January, we still seem to blame ourselves for feeling this way. What is commonly known as the ‘January Blues’ or ‘January Depression’ can be seen as a natural and biological phenomenon rather than a personal flaw. Read on to find out why that is.
Why am I so Depressed in January?
1. Disruption in the Circadian Clock
The first reason for the January Blues relates to the disruption of our circadian rhythm, which is our body’s natural 24-hour cycle that regulates sleep and wakefulness. During winter months, especially in countries far from the equator, there’s a significant decrease in daylight hours. This reduction in natural light can profoundly impact our circadian rhythm and can sometimes lead to what is known as Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD), a type of depression that’s related to changes in seasons.
Sunlight plays a crucial role in regulating our sleep patterns and mood. It influences the production of melatonin, a hormone that helps control your sleep-wake cycle, and serotonin, a neurotransmitter associated with mood regulation and well-being.
In the darker winter months, the body may produce more melatonin and less serotonin, leading to changes in sleep patterns and mood. This can result in symptoms like lethargy, a desire to sleep more, and a general feeling of low mood or sadness. After a couple of winter months of low light exposure, the effects are likely to kick in harder as January approaches and the holiday season comes to an end.
2. Dopamine Crash After the Holiday Stimulation
The second reason for the January Blues may be a “dopamine crash” that many experience following the excitement and stimulation of the holiday season. Dopamine is a neurotransmitter that plays a significant role in our experience of pleasure, motivation, and reward. During festive periods like Christmas and New Year, we often engage in activities that increase dopamine release, such as socialising, gift-giving and receiving, feasting, consuming higher amounts of sugar and alcohol, and so on. These activities create a heightened sense of joy and excitement.
After the festivities conclude, there is often a stark return to normalcy, which can lead to a sudden drop in dopamine levels. This decline can result in feelings of sadness, a lack of motivation, and a decrease in pleasure from activities that one normally enjoys. The contrast between the high levels of stimulation and the subsequent return to everyday routines can make the post-holiday period feel particularly bleak.
This phenomenon, sometimes referred to as a “dopamine crash”, can significantly contribute to the onset of January Depression. The abrupt withdrawal from a highly stimulating and rewarding environment can leave individuals feeling low and unmotivated.
3. Social Fatigue or Social Exhaustion
The third reason for the January Blues is social fatigue or exhaustion following extensive social interactions during the holiday season. The holidays often bring a flurry of social activities: family gatherings, parties with friends, and workplace celebrations. While these events can be enjoyable and fulfilling, they also demand a lot of social energy.
Social fatigue or social exhaustion occurs when an individual has expended substantial emotional and mental energy in social interactions, leading to a need for rest and recovery. This phenomenon is particularly pronounced in individuals who identify as introverts, as they tend to find prolonged social interaction more draining. However, even extroverts can experience social fatigue after an intense period of socialising.
The end of the holiday season often brings a sudden drop in social activities. This abrupt change from a socially intense period to a quieter, more isolated routine can lead to feelings of loneliness, emptiness, and a sense of disconnection. It’s a stark contrast from the warmth and camaraderie of the holidays and can contribute to low mood or depression.
4. New Year Resolution Stress
The fourth reason behind the January Blues revolves around the internal and external pressures associated with the onset of a new year. The tradition of setting New Year’s resolutions or goals is deeply ingrained in many cultures. This practice, while meant to be motivating and positive, can lead to significant stress and anxiety for many individuals.
The beginning of the year is frequently seen as a time for transformation and self-improvement. This perspective can create a sense of urgency and high expectations for personal changes, such as starting a new diet, exercise regime, or achieving career goals. The pressure, whether self-imposed or influenced by societal norms and the accomplishments of peers, can be overwhelming. When these expectations are not met, or progress is slower than anticipated, it can lead to feelings of failure, low self-esteem, and depression.
5. Economical Strain After the Holiday Spending
A fifth significant reason contributing to the January Blues is the economic strain experienced after the holiday season. The holidays are often a time of increased spending for many individuals and families. Expenses such as gifts, travel, festive decorations, and elaborate meals can lead to financial stress and anxiety, which often become more pronounced once the holiday season is over and the reality of the expenses incurred sets in.
The societal pressure to participate in holiday spending, coupled with the bombardment of advertising and consumer culture, can exacerbate this stress. People may feel compelled to spend beyond their means during the holidays, leading to a more severe ‘financial hangover’ in January.
Financial worries can trigger the release of cortisol, the body’s primary stress hormone. Chronic financial stress keeps cortisol levels elevated, leading to various negative health outcomes such as anxiety, depression, insomnia, and immune system suppression.
How To Overcome the January Blues: 3 Do’s and 3 Don’ts
It’s important to recognise that many of the reasons behind the January Blues are biological responses to environmental changes and do not reflect personal failings. Knowing this can alleviate some of the emotional burden associated with feeling low and unmotivated in January.
Although we may not be able to escape all the uncomfortable feelings, we can help soften negative feelings rather than exacerbate them by stopping to blame ourselves for feeling ‘bad’ and instead practising more compassion and understanding towards ourselves.
By understanding the January Blues is a natural and biological process, we can take comfort in the fact that it is not a result of wrongdoing but a temporary state. Moreover, we do have the ability to influence how quickly we recover from the January depression by implementing a few practices. Here’s how:
3 Do’s to Tackle Your January Blues in 2024
1. Get More Light and Vitamin D
Reset your circadian clock by consistently exposing yourself to more light, both in the morning and evening, to simulate sunrise and sunset. Regular light exposure at the same times every day will help synchronise your circadian rhythm, thereby aiding in the regulation of neurotransmitters for improved sleep and a better mood. For those living in northern countries, where daylight hours are limited during this time of the year, using artificial light is recommended. Light therapy is often used to treat people suffering from Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD). Additionally, since a lack of natural light can impact Vitamin D intake and contribute to tiredness, supplementing with Vitamin D can be beneficial for some people.
2. Make January Your Planning Month
To mitigate the stress of New Year’s resolutions, it can be helpful to start slowly. Jumping from holiday mode directly into action mode too quickly can become overwhelming and challenging. Feeling overwhelmed and anxious about starting the year may backfire and lead to procrastination. Later on, this can create feelings of disappointment and frustration. Instead of setting your resolutions or goals to start from the 2nd of January, give yourself extra time to fine-tune the plan for the upcoming year. Make January your planning month, where you craft more detailed, specific, and measurable action steps into the plan, ensuring success, rather than jumping right into it.
3. Make Extra Money Through Healthcare Market Research
Taking one step to improve a situation that’s causing worry, feels good. Often, it’s the worrying thoughts about the situation that make us feel worse, sometimes even more so than the situation itself. Such anxiety can be paralysing, preventing any action at all. If you’re under financial strain or in debt after the holidays, finding ways to make extra money can be helpful.
One flexible and lucrative option is participating in paid healthcare market research studies with M3. Whether you’re a physician, healthcare professional, or someone with healthcare experience, sharing your medical knowledge and personal experiences through paid online surveys, interviews, focus groups, and other paid market research studies can be rewarding. Our recommendation for alleviating the January Blues is to take a proactive step towards improving your finances. Become an M3 member today and get access to paid market research studies.
3 Don’ts to Tackle Your January Blues in 2024
1. Don’t Engage in High Dopamine Activities
After the holiday festivities, it’s very likely that our dopamine baseline is high, which can lead to feelings of low energy, reduced motivation, and reluctance to take action. Our natural dopamine baseline tends to get out of balance when we indulge in dopamine-high activities like excessive eating, shopping, receiving gifts, or socialising, which often occur during the holiday season.
To regain balance and start feeling joy and satisfaction from normal everyday activities, we must manage our dopamine release. This is best achieved by refraining from engaging in high dopamine activities for a while, allowing our dopamine baseline to return to its normal level. This process is sometimes referred to as ‘Dopamine Fasting’. Learn more about what the dopamine baseline is and how to manage natural dopamine levels in our recent article titled ‘The Neuroscience of Dopamine: How to Stay Motivated?‘.
2. Don’t Make New Year's Resolutions
Consider not making, or perhaps giving up your New Year’s resolutions. Setting goals and seeking improvement is a wonderful thing, and it has been proven to benefit our mental health. However, if the stress and anxiety of starting or maintaining them are causing too much friction and perhaps even feelings of depression, it may be worth putting them off altogether. For many people, the ultimate goal is simply to feel good. If your New Year’s resolutions and goals are working against you rather than for you, it could be worth delaying your plan until you feel less resistance and more willingness to engage with them.
3. Don’t Isolate Yourself
When we feel low, exhausted, or depressed, it can be tempting to isolate ourselves. During times of social exhaustion or fatigue, it is indeed important to allow ourselves time to recover in a way that works for us, which may include taking time for ourselves. However, once this recovery process is complete, if we still feel low and struggle to improve our mood, research shows that continued isolation is not the solution. Seeking connection and support from family, friends, and colleagues can help us better cope with feelings of loneliness, disconnection, and hopelessness. This January, reach out to someone you trust and share how you really feel. It could be the case that they, too, are experiencing the January Blues.
If you find this article about how to tackle your January Blues helpful, share it with a friend or a colleague via social media and let us know your thoughts in the comment section below.
Take Part in the Research
You Might Be Interested in:
Tackle Your January Blues in 2024: 3 Do’s and 3 Don’ts
Discover 5 science-based reasons behind the January Blues phenomenon and learn how to tackle your January depression. Get practical recommendations on how to feel better by resetting your circadian clock, managing your dopamine levels, and regaining financial stability after the holiday season.
7 Emotional Regulation Strategies for Physicians
Most people go through seasons of emotional turbulence throughout their lives. Coping with these challenges alongside heavy workloads and medical responsibilities as a physician can be even harder. Here are seven emotional regulation strategies and stress relief techniques to help you self-regulate and improve your well-being as a physician.
1 comments