Valentine Ideas for Couples
When women become mothers, it can sometimes put a dent in the romance. Let’s face it - we’re exhausted by the end of the day, often have had little ones hanging off of us for a good portion of it, and are less than enthused about more physical contact with our husbands. [...]

Supplements
I left supplementation as the last tip in this series. It is an important factor in preventing a mid-winter funk, but you should use them in conjunction with the other tips:
1. Socialize. Get together with your friends as often as possible. It makes winter bearable!
2. Sleep. It is hard to have a positive outlook when you are [...]

Celebrate Your Talents
What do you truly *love* to do? Sometimes when we become mothers, we put the “frivolous” things that we enjoy on the back burner while we take care of our families. While some of this is necessary, we don’t have to give up what we love doing just because we have kids.
Do [...]

Exercise
I can hear the groans already… you knew I was going to get to exercise, right?!
Like anything else, doing the right thing is always more effort than not dealing with it. However, the benefits of this one single tip are huge.
* Your body functions better
* You get natural endorphins (a high)
* You feel good [...]

You are what you Eat
When I’m in a funk, food is a source of comfort for me and I go for it in a big way. This is so obviously counter-productive. I feel bad, so why not pack on a few pounds so I can be depressed about that too? This starts a whole negative [...]

The series on Beating the Winter Blahs continues….
Laugh
Laugh? But I’m depressed! Yeah, I know. So force it.
In the depths of a funk, I notice that I rarely smile, letalone laugh. My kids can be bouncing around me, laughing and playing and having a great time. I barely manage a grunt in response to an [...]

Nature
When I am starting to get into my funk I like to retreat into my cave. I stay in the house, I don’t open the curtains, I don’t want to go anywhere. I want to stay in my sweatpants and t-shirt and vegetate. Very productive, I know.
Getting outside always makes me feel better. Fresh [...]

Sleep
In one way, this seems counter-intuitive. When I’m depressed, I tend to want to sleep too much. The girls get up before dawn (when does the sun come back, anyway??), and I just want to pull the covers over my head and stay there all day.
However, sleep is important for your brain function, and [...]

Socialize
I notice that I tend to withdraw when I start to feel down. I don’t want to go out, I decline social invitations from friends, and dread turning on the computer to a flood of emails.
This year, I will not let this start to happen. Luckily I have some great friends who understand my [...]

The new year has hit, and here comes the post-holiday letdown. I tend to slide into a funk in January, as many of us do. Winter transitions from being quaint and festive to simply being cold and dark. And way too long.
To fight the winter blues, I’m going to share the tips and tricks I [...]