Combat the Blue Monday winter blues!

Jodi LeBlanc
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January 20, 2020

Are you feeling a little blue this January? Don't worry, many others are feeling it too!

The third Monday in January, also known as Blue Monday, is said to be the most depressing day of the year. A combination of post-holiday bills, the abandonment of New Year's resolutions, the lack of exposure to sunlight and cold weather are to blame. People tend to feel less energetic, less motivated and maybe a little more down than usual.

Here are a few tips that will help you combat the winter blues:

·         Get out in the sun for 10 to 20 minutes per day.

·         Exercise—as little as 10 minutes a day will help lift your mood.

·         Use a light therapy lamp.

·         Eat healthy, balanced meals.

·         Do your best to get 7 to 8 hours of good, regular sleep.

·         Meditate—regular meditation is one of the best ways to heal depression.

 How do you combat Blue Monday?

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Kat Warner
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Marketplace Partners provide apps and integrations available on the Atlassian Marketplace that extend the power of Atlassian products.
January 20, 2020

Blue Monday is a public holiday where I live - it is our regional anniversary day. It was also the first day in years I got sunburnt!

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Jodi LeBlanc
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January 20, 2020

Oh wow, that's neat about it being a public holiday in your country. Ouch regarding the sunburn, however sounds like a beautiful day you had outside ☀️

Kat Warner
Marketplace Partner
Marketplace Partners provide apps and integrations available on the Atlassian Marketplace that extend the power of Atlassian products.
January 20, 2020

It's only a public holiday for the Wellington region. Each region in NZ has an anniversary day public holiday.

 

Regional anniversary days 2020

  • Auckland anniversary day — Monday 27 January
  • Buller anniversary day — Monday 3 February
  • Canterbury (South) anniversary day — Monday 28 September
  • Canterbury anniversary day — Friday 13 November
  • Chatham Islands anniversary day — Monday 30 November
  • Hawke's Bay anniversary day — Friday 23 October
  • Marlborough anniversary day — Monday 2 November
  • Nelson anniversary day — Monday 3 February
  • Northland anniversary day — Monday 27 January
  • Otago anniversary day — Monday 23 March
  • Southland anniversary day — Tuesday 14 April
  • Taranaki anniversary day — Monday 9 March
  • Wellington anniversary day — Monday 20 January
  • Westland anniversary day — Monday 30 November
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Jodi LeBlanc
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January 20, 2020

Thanks for sharing, I really need to learn more about NZ and all the regions. Someday I would love to visit, and Australia too (since they are only 4,155 km away from each other).

Kat Warner
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Marketplace Partners provide apps and integrations available on the Atlassian Marketplace that extend the power of Atlassian products.
January 20, 2020

Does 4,155 km sound like a small distance to you? West Island (Australia) is great to visit if you get the right time of year. :P

Jodi LeBlanc
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January 20, 2020

LOL no, but if I am going to travel 13,056 km to New Zealand, I may as well go another 4,155 km to visit Australia. A teleporter/transporter would sure come in handy for all my bucket list/wish list adventures.

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Dave_Liao January 21, 2020

Be sure to stagger any recurring bill due dates (and track what they are!) so you don't get hit with one massive "pay the bills" Monday. :-D

Jodi LeBlanc
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January 21, 2020

Great tip @Dave_Liao - thanks for sharing!

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Darryl St_ Pierre
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January 21, 2020

Did not realize this was "a thing" until now! Partly explains the apparent Blue 3-Day Weekend I just had...

I definitely need more natural light in my life.

I continue to love all your articles as I run across them!

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Jodi LeBlanc
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January 21, 2020

Sorry to hear that @Darryl St_ Pierre - now you know why you felt the way you did. I agree, it's finally sunny here today but -24 windchill so not really fit to go for a walk outside. My friend has a Happy Light by verilux on her desk and she loves it. I may need to get one too. Thanks for your kind words about my articles, means so much :)

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Jason H
Atlassian Team
Atlassian Team members are employees working across the company in a wide variety of roles.
January 21, 2020

One way to combat it is to visit Australia - it's hard to be cold and miserable in 30-40 degree heat.

Pity it's not the 4th Monday of January though - that would be our Australia Day holiday this year!

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Jodi LeBlanc
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January 21, 2020

I definitely have Australia on my bucket list - during my winter and your summer of course :)

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Darryl St_ Pierre
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January 22, 2020

I had to laugh at myself after reading this... being American and trapped in the Fahrenheit mindset, 30-40 is not much of a change. Then Australia, and Celsius, and Summer kicked in. 

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Jodi LeBlanc
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January 22, 2020

Lol that temperature is so confusing, my parents grew up on Farenheit, but Canada changed to Celsius many years ago so it can be confusing when I travel to US. If I mention to people that it is 2 degrees back home they give me the strangest looks lol Wow 30-40 is super hot in Celsius, what a summer. In PEI we are lucky to get 25-30 in summer, but it is my favourite kind of weather, not sticky.

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Kevin Bui
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January 21, 2020

@Jodi LeBlanc What an insightful post! I genuinely didn't realize this was a thing til now. For me personally, I find regular exercise, 8 hours of sleep, and a good book/podcast/video game to be really helpful.

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Jodi LeBlanc
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January 22, 2020

Thank you so much for sharing @Kevin Bui - I am trying harder to get more sleep. I aim for 8 hours but tend to wake up super early, missing out on that last hour of REM.

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