Embracing Winter's Reality Through Mindset and Ritual

Science Friday · December 25, 2025 · Listen to Original Episode →

Original Title:

TL;DR

Adopting a positive winter mindset, viewing cold, dark, and wet conditions as potentially refreshing or cozy, can mitigate negative psychological impacts, even for those not naturally inclined towards winter enjoyment.
Embracing seasonal rituals, such as enjoying hot beverages or engaging in activities like saunas and cold plunges, transforms winter's perceived discomfort into opportunities for sensory pleasure and anticipation.
Recognizing that winter-related fatigue and reduced motivation are often natural responses to seasonal light changes, rather than clinical depression, allows for adaptive behavioral adjustments instead of pathologizing normal reactions.
Creating specific markers for transitional periods, like "spring winter," helps individuals mentally navigate the prolonged shift from winter to spring, reducing frustration during unpredictable weather.
Engaging in activities that require adaptation to winter, such as planting daffodils for spring blooms or getting dogs that encourage outdoor activity, provides purpose and forward-looking engagement during colder months.
Learning from cultures with extreme winters, like the Sami's eight-season model, offers frameworks for understanding and naming nuanced seasonal experiences, thereby increasing awareness and acceptance.
The strategy of planting daffodils in the fall provides a tangible, seasonal activity that counters the onset of winter's shorter days and offers a concrete marker of approaching spring.

Deep Dive

Winter, often perceived as a period of decline and depression, can instead be a season for thriving by adopting a mindset that embraces its unique characteristics. This perspective shift, learned from those in extreme northern climates, suggests that rather than fighting winter's inherent qualities of darkness and cold, individuals can adapt their behavior and find rejuvenation by actively engaging with the season.

The core of this approach lies in adapting to winter's reality, rather than resisting it. Unlike lower latitudes where winter is often treated as an inconvenience to be endured, regions with extreme winters, like northern Norway, Iceland, and the Netherlands, demonstrate that acknowledging and adjusting to seasonal changes leads to lower rates of winter depression. This adaptation involves recognizing that feeling more tired or seeking warmth is a natural response to reduced daylight, not a pathology. For instance, listener Shannon Mitchell from Michigan adopts Finnish practices like saunas and cold plunges, while Tony from North Carolina finds comfort in a cup of tea and seasonal television. These are not trivial rituals but intentional acts that transform potentially unpleasant experiences into opportunities for sensory pleasure and seasonal enjoyment. Similarly, listener D's practice of planting daffodils in the fall provides an activity during the shortening days and a concrete marker of spring's eventual arrival, effectively creating a "spring winter" bridge season that acknowledges the transition period between true winter and full spring. This conceptualization, similar to the Sami people's eight seasons, allows for a more nuanced experience of the transition, mitigating the disappointment of unexpected cold after a brief warm spell.

Embracing winter also involves cultivating a positive mindset, which is not about denying its challenges but about reframing their meaning. Health psychologist Dr. Carrie Lebowitz defines this as a core assumption that allows for the perception of winter's objective qualities--darkness, cold, and wetness--as potentially refreshing, rejuvenating, or cozy, rather than solely negative. Listener Cody from the Oregon coast, who enjoys overcast weather, exemplifies this mindset, highlighting that even if not naturally inclined, the appreciation for winter's qualities can be trained. This contrasts with the common tendency to pathologize natural responses to seasonal changes, such as feeling less energetic, by labeling them as "winter blues" or "winter doldrums" instead of recognizing them as normal adaptations. The inclusion of pets, like listener Dan's dogs, also serves as a powerful motivator for outdoor activity, mirroring the unadulterated joy animals often exhibit in snow, and encouraging a more playful engagement with the season.

Ultimately, the key to thriving in winter is to actively engage with and adapt to its conditions, recognizing that seasonal affective disorder is a subtype of clinical depression, not merely a mild response to winter. By reframing winter as an opportunity for specific seasonal activities and adopting a mindset that finds meaning and pleasure in its unique characteristics, individuals can move beyond simply coping to genuinely embracing and benefiting from the season.

Action Items

Create winter mindset inventory: Identify 3-5 personal assumptions about winter and reframe them as opportunities for rejuvenation or coziness.
Implement seasonal ritual: Design one recurring activity (e.g., weekly sauna, monthly winter hike) to anticipate and embrace winter's unique offerings.
Track seasonal adaptation: For 2-4 weeks, observe and log personal energy levels and mood fluctuations, noting correlations with light and temperature changes.
Draft spring-winter transition plan: Outline 3-5 strategies to navigate the period between late winter and early spring, acknowledging its unique challenges.

Key Quotes

"Apparently one of the key ingredients is something I do not possess at the moment which is a positive winter time mindset here to tell us more is Dr. Carrie Leibowitz health psychologist and author of How to Winter Harness Your Mindset to Thrive on Cold Dark or Difficult Days."

Flora Lichtman introduces Dr. Carrie Leibowitz, highlighting that a positive winter mindset is a crucial element for thriving in cold weather. This sets up the central theme of the discussion: how to cultivate a more optimistic perspective on winter.

"So a big part of what that looks like is this willingness to adapt to winter so I almost think there's an advantage of having a really extreme winter because when you live in a place like where I was living in Norway where the sun actually doesn't rise for two months it's obvious that that is going to affect you and it's obvious that you can and should change your behavior to adjust to that."

Dr. Carrie Leibowitz explains that adapting to winter is a key strategy, suggesting that extreme winters can be advantageous because they make the need for behavioral adjustments obvious. She implies that in milder climates, people may resist acknowledging winter's impact.

"My name is Shannon Mitchell from Grand Haven, Michigan and how do I get through the lake effect dark winters that we have here I have adopted a Finnish lifestyle from my experiences up in the UP which is saunas, cold plunges, Nordic skiing and when the sun is out it's guns out no matter what the situation is."

Shannon Mitchell shares her strategy for coping with Michigan winters by adopting a Finnish lifestyle, incorporating saunas, cold plunges, and Nordic skiing. This demonstrates how embracing seasonal activities can be a way to actively engage with and enjoy winter.

"Tony in Charlotte, North Carolina and I'm sitting in a Chick-fil-A parking lot having my peppermint shake that's one help uh it's starting to snow but my most regular thing that I go to is um a nice cup of tea and the Hallmark Channel it seems to um help quite a bit."

Tony describes his winter coping mechanism, which involves enjoying a peppermint shake and watching the Hallmark Channel with a cup of tea. Dr. Leibowitz interprets this as a seasonal ritual that, despite its simplicity, can transform an unpleasant aspect of winter into a source of comfort and sensory pleasure.

"So you know I use that word very specifically so we think of mindsets as sort of the core assumption about something in the world and how it works and so the truth is that lots of things in the world are ambiguous right like stress is a good example stress can be harmful for our health and well-being but it also can be helpful for our performance and our health and well-being right the stress response evolved to help us meet our goals and so when we encounter stress what is our mindset about it and how does that determine something like stress's impact on us and you can think about that with winter as well."

Dr. Carrie Leibowitz defines "mindset" as a core assumption about how something works, using stress as an example of something that can have both negative and positive impacts depending on one's perspective. She then applies this concept to winter, suggesting that its qualities are also open to interpretation.

"So Seasonal Affective Disorder is really interesting because I think there's a lot of popular misconceptions about it I think a lot of people think that it is a mild form of depression that it is sort of a lower threshold than clinical depression but the truth is that Seasonal Affective Disorder is a subtype of clinical depression so you first have to meet the criteria of clinical depression it has to severely disrupt your quality of life and your daily functioning."

Dr. Carrie Leibowitz clarifies that Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD) is not a mild form of depression but a subtype of clinical depression, requiring individuals to meet the criteria for severe disruption to their daily lives. She notes that many people experience normal responses to winter's changes, which are often mislabeled as SAD.

Resources

External Resources

Books

"How To Winter" by Dr. Carrie Leibowitz - Mentioned as the author's book on harnessing mindset to thrive in cold, dark, or difficult days.

People

Dr. Carrie Leibowitz - Health psychologist and author, expert on wintertime adaptation and mindset.
Shannon Mitchell - Listener from Grand Haven, Michigan, who shared her adoption of a Finnish lifestyle for winter.
Tony - Listener from Charlotte, North Carolina, who shared his winter coping mechanisms of tea and the Hallmark Channel.
D - Listener from North Manchester who plants daffodils in the fall as a marker for spring.
Cody - Listener from the Oregon coast who enjoys overcast weather and winter.
Dan - Listener from Bear Lake, Michigan, who adopted dogs to help enjoy winter.
Emma Gomez - Science Friday's digital producer, recognized for her newsletter work and creative contributions.

Organizations & Institutions

Science Friday - Podcast that aired the episode and featured listener contributions.
Alienware - Sponsor of Science Friday, mentioned for holiday savings on PCs and accessories.
ATT - Sponsor of Science Friday, mentioned for network speed and reliability.
GiveWell - Sponsor of Science Friday, an organization dedicated to researching cost-effective charitable programs.
OMGYES.com - Sponsor of Science Friday, a website presenting research findings on women's pleasure and intimacy.
Yale University - Collaborated on research for OMGYES.com.
Indiana University - Collaborated on research for OMGYES.com.
New York Times Wirecutter - Featured OMGYES.com as a popular gift.

Other Resources

Finnish lifestyle - Mentioned as a set of strategies including saunas, cold plunges, and Nordic skiing for winter adaptation.
Nordic skiing - Shared as a strategy for enjoying winter.
Saunas - Shared as a strategy for enjoying winter.
Cold plunges - Shared as a strategy for enjoying winter.
Hallmark Channel - Mentioned as a seasonal ritual that helps with winter comfort.
Peppermint shake - Mentioned as a wintertime comfort.
Daffodils - Planted in the fall to look forward to their spring sprouting.
Eight seasons (Sami) - A concept from the indigenous Sami people of northern Scandinavia, including bridge seasons like spring winter.
Spring winter - A sub-season identified by the Sami people, representing the transition period between winter and spring.
Petrichor - The earthy smell after rain, associated with the spring winter transition.
Crocuses - Flowers that pop through the ground during the spring winter transition.
Winter doldrums - A common shorthand for negative feelings associated with winter.
Winter blues - A common shorthand for negative feelings associated with winter.
Winter wellness - A suggested positive framing for winter.
Winter wonder - A suggested positive framing for winter.
Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD) - Discussed as a subtype of clinical depression, with misconceptions about its severity.
Stress response - Discussed as a mechanism that can be helpful for performance and well-being.
Positive winter time mindset - A mindset that views winter's objective qualities (dark, cold, wet) as potentially refreshing, rejuvenating, cozy, or magical.