When spring starts you feel invigorated, world is coming back to life and you have a feeling so are you; in the winter, when everything outside your window is covered in snow, you have a feeling of peace and calm; summers are full of bright colors, sun and constant movement to the beach, to the pool, to drop kids off at their friends’ or pick them up from camp. Falls, however, are just gloomy, it’s back to school time that everybody hates, readjusting to work after vacation, days becoming shorter and colder, so no wonder so many people feel the blues. You could give up and feel tired, sad and discouraged, or you could stand up and try to liven up your fall.

When you get up in the morning and the sun is still low and dim, you don’t feel like getting dressed and going out but instead you’d rather crawl back under covers. Since you can’t skip work, though, you need to fight that feeling. To get yourself going, jump in a shower and use a fragrant mood boosting shower gel that will wake you up completely, and rinse off with cool water just in case. After the shower routine, don’t reach for grays and browns in your closet but compose a colorful outfit using one of your couture dresses mixed with one of the bright sweaters, printed tights and cute shoes. A cheerful look will change your attitude and you’ll find a big smile on your face when you check in the mirror if everything is right.

With the rain or grey skies outside you probably want to lie down on the couch and watch a movie, or curl up with a good book. You also want to eat something hot and much heavier than summer salads, but the full, heavy stomach leads to you feeling sleepy. It can end up with you leaving the house only when you have to go to work or grocery shopping, alienating you from your friends and putting some depressing pounds on you. To avoid it, go ahead and have some hot soup, make some chicken wit vegetables, but let the soup be full of vegetables and instead of piling up mashed potatoes with your chicken, better stuff toasted pita bread with it. Not to mention giving up the couch and getting your friend to join a gym or signing up for self defense classes to keep both your body and spirit in shape.

Fall is the most depressing season because after a sunny summer full of socializing you find yourself waking up to drab, lonely days. Try to make small things cheer you up and brighten your outfits and spaces you spend a lot of time in, play some cheerful music in he car, make sure you get out regularly as to not give into the feelings that put you down. And if you still feel your spirits falling, open up to your spouse or a friend and maybe together you’ll find a way to push through by joining a pottery class, starting a book club or simply by talking and finding reasons to smile.