Beating the Winter Blues in Style and Luxury

The dark and cold weeks of winter can put us under a depressing veil of misery. If you’re missing the warm glow of the sun, you can always fly out to somewhere sunny and take a dip in the azure waters of the sea, but if you’re one of the many whose savings have been severely depleted by the holidays, there are other ways to beat the winter blues in style and luxury.

Go on a staycation

Why mope around in your house when you can mope around somewhere else? Kidding aside, a staycation in a cosy inn or hotel a short drive away is a luxurious way of relaxing and beating the winter blues. You don’t have to spend much on a two-night stay, plus you’ll get to explore parts of the town you haven’t been to. Top tip: go for a room with a balcony, or a fantastic window view. Have your breakfast in the open air to soak in the natural light and vitamin D.

In addition, doctors say that our bodies need to be exposed to a light intensity of around 2500 lux each morning in order to allow our body clocks to work properly. On a clear winter morning, you can get up to 4000 lux by just being exposed to the outdoors for 30 minutes. Exposure to sunlight can also boost your body’s production of serotonin, the happy hormone.

Indulge in expensive chocolate

To further compensate for the lack of sunshine that’s giving you the winter blues, eat chocolate! It’s true that chocolate can perk up your mood, and it’s backed up by science: chocolate contains tryptophan, a natural amino acid that is involved in the production of serotonin. Our sunlight-deprived winter bodies manufacture less serotonin, so we need something to boost up the production.

Some types of chocolate contains more tryptophan than others; generally, the more cocoa bean content there is, the higher the amount of tryptophan in the chocolate. What sorts of chocolates have high cocoa bean content? Why, the expensive ones, of course. If you want to beat the winter blues, go ahead and splurge—this is your chance to finally indulge!

Have a fancy dinner

The winter blues can also give you the sniffles, so it’s important that you boost your immunity. If you’re not in the mood to cook—especially if there’s only one or at most, two of you in the house—you can dress up and go out for a warm meal in a fancy restaurant for excellent winter food. Go for dishes that are packed with vitamins and minerals, such as soups and stews packed with vegetables. Dining out also lets you choose from a wide variety of unusual vegetables such as Jerusalem artichokes and celeriac. You can also go for seasonal vegetables such as barley. Wherever you choose to eat, just make sure you have a balanced diet high in vitamins and minerals to ward off colds and flu.

Dress up

Looking sad and frumpy lets people know you let the winter blues own you. Go out, wear that new down jacket, a smart-looking scarf, a good pair of boots to go over your two layers of socks, and a wool cap. Get some sun or go out to that fancy dinner. The season may make everything else look grey, but that doesn’t mean you have to look pale and dull as well.

Give yourself a warm burst of sunshine with these fancy and swanky tips, and you’ll surely beat the winter blues in no time!