5 Ways Winter Overwhelms Us — And How We Can Honour the Season Instead
This time of year has a way of creeping up on us.
One moment we’re in the golden light of autumn, and the next… everything feels heavier.
Busier.
Louder inside our bodies, quieter outside in the world.
If you’ve been feeling exhausted, emotional, overwhelmed, or suddenly unable to cope with things you normally manage just fine — you’re not failing.
You’re seasonal.
We all are.
Your body is responding exactly as it’s meant to as we descend into winter. But modern life? It doesn’t make space for that. And every year, we feel the consequences.
Here are 5 reasons winter feels overwhelming for women, and how you can begin to honour this sacred season instead of fighting it.
1. Your emotions sit closer to the surface
As the external world quietens, your internal world becomes louder.
There’s less distraction, less noise, less daylight — and suddenly the feelings you pushed aside in summer begin to rise.
Old stories.
Self-doubt.
Tenderness.
Grief.
Memories.
Stuff you thought you’d “dealt with.”
Nothing is wrong.
Nothing is broken.
This is simply what happens when we move toward stillness.
How to honour it:
• Let yourself feel without trying to fix
• Slow your pace when tears or irritation come
• Create pockets of emotional softness (warm baths, journaling, candlelight)
• Stop judging normal winter sensitivity
2. Your energy naturally drops — and you can’t override it
The trees have pulled their sap down into their roots.
Animals have retreated, softened, conserving energy.
Nature is doing what nature always does: descending.
Your hormones respond to the light shift.
Your nervous system slows.
Your brain chemistry adjusts.
This tiredness isn’t laziness.
It’s biology.
It’s ancient.
How to honour it:
• Go to bed earlier (your circadian rhythm wants this)
• Say no more often
• Reduce screen time at night
• Create white space in your week
• Let yourself rest without guilt
3. Your capacity shrinks — but your responsibilities don’t
This is the most overwhelming part.
While your body whispers “slow down,” the world throws:
School events
Christmas planning
Family expectations
Work deadlines
Financial pressure
Social commitments
Women carry the emotional load of the festive season more than anyone.
Your system is trying to hibernate — while your calendar is trying to sprint.
How to honour it:
• Simplify Christmas (yes, you’re allowed)
• Do less, better
• Ask for help — and let people help
• Manage expectations before you hit breaking point
• Reduce “extras” where you can
Your capacity is seasonal. Honour the season.
4. The nervous system becomes more sensitive
Colder temperatures.
Darker days.
Busier social environments.
Financial pressure.
More to do, less light to do it in.
Your nervous system is running at a higher baseline of stress without you even realising it.
This is why you might be:
• snappier
• more tearful
• more anxious
• more easily overwhelmed
• less tolerant of other people’s energy
• more reactive to small things
How to honour it:
• Ground daily (bare feet on floor, 3 deep breaths, hand on heart)
• Reduce stimulation — less noise, less scrolling, more silence
• Eat warm grounding foods
• Keep your routine slow and predictable
Your system is not weak.
It’s seasonally attuned.
5. We’ve forgotten the old ways
Our ancestors didn’t push through winter.
They didn’t pretend the dark didn’t affect them.
They didn’t work at the same pace year-round.
They rested with the light.
They gathered.
They cooked slow food.
They told stories by the fire.
They dreamt the dreams that would guide the new year.
They tended the inner flame.
Somewhere along the line, we lost that rhythm.
But your body hasn’t.
How to honour it:
• Bring back the rituals: candles, cooking, soft evenings
• Spend more time indoors with intention, not guilt
• Allow more reflection, less doing
• Reconnect to nature — even a 10-minute walk helps
• Honour the descent, not just the return of the light
This is not a season of productivity.
It’s a season of remembering.
So what do we do with all of this?
We stop fighting winter.
We stop forcing ourselves into summer energy.
We stop ignoring what our bodies are asking for.
We honour the season we’re in — not the season society expects.
And this is exactly why I created The Sacred Pause.
A seven-week guided journey from Solstice to Imbolc — the most natural time for women to slow down, rest, soften, listen, and reset.
It’s the medicine for the overwhelm.
The antidote to the pressure.
The remembrance of your winter rhythm.
If something in you is whispering “I need this…” — trust that whisper.
This winter can feel different.
You can feel different.
You just have to give yourself permission to pause.
With love,
Laura x
And don’t forget to check out this weeks podcast, which is live now: Around the Kitchen Table | The Truth About Winter Overwhelm: Your Body Knows the Season — Do You?
