And just like that the nights are drawing in, there’s a chill in the air and autumn is just around the corner. If the thought of the long, dark nights ahead fills you with dread, we have some helpful wellbeing tips to make the most of the colder season.
Get outside in all weathers
The UK’s weather is notoriously unreliable. On average the summer month of July gives us around 200 hours of sunshine but fast forward to December, and that number drops significantly to around 50 hours of sunshine in the month which sometimes can have an impact on our wellbeing. Add to that working long hours during the day and it can feel almost impossible to catch those elusive rays. Natural daylight supports our circadian clock and helps us sleep at night, so it’s important to get as much daylight as possible — whatever the weather. Get up a little earlier and go for a morning walk before work or make your lunch hour the time that you exercise. Encourage work mates or friends to join you for a stroll. Listen to the heavenly sounds of the birds, feel the breeze on your face, and enjoy the sounds of a stream rippling. If you can, book a few days away in the cheaper season to explore different landscapes. A coastal path you’ve never discovered, a hill you’ve never conquered, a market town you’ve always wanted to visit, a stay with YHA gives you the perfect reason to make the most of the daylight hours.
Read more on the benefits of getting outside from Alex Staniforth, YHA ambassador and co-founder of Mind over Mountains — a charity dedicated to restoring mental health through nature. Here’s a snippet:
”Nature is a vital tool in helping to fill the gap and guide people through the anxieties and uncertainty ahead — to find time for themselves, some healing, hope and a reconnection with what matters.”
Stargaze in the darker nights
Accept the beauty of the darker nights which are creeping in as they bring us the beauty of the moon and the stars. Anyone can stargaze, it’s absolutely free. The hope that a shooting star might pass, or that there will be a full moon, or seeing who can spot the biggest star — there’s so much excitement and interest in observing dark skies. You don’t need to travel to a mountain or field, getting a clear view of the stars from the middle of a city is possible too. Choose a cloudless evening, wrap up warm and enjoy our solar system.
Download our activity pack which has a fantastic guide on what to look out for. Or indulge in some star gazing at YHA The Sill at Hadrian’s Wall. Located in the Northumberland Dark Sky Park, this site is Europe’s largest area of protected night sky. Here you can see the Milky Way in all its glowing glory. And, if you use binoculars you will see its bright central core — a mesmerising sight. Because of the rural location there is no light pollution, so on a clear night you can see up to 2,000 stars at any one time, and the furthest you can see with your naked eye is 2.5 million light years away!
Get cosy
Taking steps to make yourself feel cosy and comfortable during the colder months will make a difference to your wellbeing. If you feel good in yourself, it helps your mental health and we’re much more likely to feel better if we are comfortable, warm enough, cosy and settled. Add some comfort items to your shopping list, they don’t have to be expensive and can be picked up from charity shops or on resale websites such as Vinted. Thick, cosy jumpers, waterproofs so you can go out in all weathers, gloves, woolly socks and blankets to pile on the sofa so you can hunker down when watching telly. Self-care in its simplest form is looking after ourselves and our own mental health, taking time out when we need it, recognising what makes us feel good.
If you’d like to visit any of our hostels in the coming months, here are some of our cosiest properties.
Take on a new hobby
Now is the perfect time to take up that hobby you’ve been thinking about for a while but keep putting off. Spending time on an activity that you enjoy can improve mental health and wellbeing. Research shows that people with hobbies are less likely to suffer from stress, low mood, and depression. Getting out and about for an activity contributes to feelings of happiness and makes you more relaxed. Doing group activities like team sports improves your relationships with other and your communication skills.
So, why not join a book club, head to your local library to find out about local clubs or start a family book club — we have some great autumn recommended reads to get you started. With a new season of Bake Off appearing on our screens perhaps now is the time to indulge your inner Prue Leith and expand your cooking skills or why not investigate your local cycling club, we have some fantastic seasonal cycling routes you could try for a taster.
Make happiness your goal
Action for Happiness is a movement that aims to take action to be happier and kinder together. Every month they do a calendar with a tip for every day that should help improve your mental wellbeing. This September is self-care September and has advice such as be as kind to yourself as you would to a loved one. They also have free online coaching for happier living, inspiring talks from leading thinkers on how to lead a happier life or if you want to be part of something bigger you can connect with others in a group to take action on happiness.
There are also links to volunteering — find happiness through helping others. If you’re thinking about helping others, as a way of improving your own mental wellbeing then you can read our blog on volunteering for YHA and all the benefits it brings.
If you just need to talk, any time of day or night, these services offer confidential support from trained volunteers.
Call 116123 to talk to Samaritans. If you’re under 19, you can call Childline on 0800 1111. The number will not appear on your phone bill. The mental health charity Mind has information on ways to help yourself cope in a crisis.
