So the clocks went back on Sunday. You got your extra hour in bed, which was lovely for about a day. Now it’s dark by five, you’re yawning at half eight and the alarm feels like a personal insult. Sound familiar? You’re in good company.
We hear about the winter blues a lot at this time of year. Students mention it. So do patients, and if we’re honest, so does half our own team. So we thought we’d look at what’s actually going on, what Chinese medicine makes of it, and what genuinely helps.
Why do I feel so tired when the clocks go back?
Short answer: your body clock hasn’t caught up yet, and there’s less daylight around to help it along.
Light is the main thing that sets our internal rhythm. When the evenings suddenly get dark an hour earlier, your body starts winding down sooner than you’d like, and mornings feel heavier. For most people that settles in a week or two. For some, the flat mood and low energy hang about until spring, and that’s when it’s worth paying a bit more attention.
Winter blues or SAD? How to tell the difference
Feeling a bit sluggish in November is normal. Seasonal affective disorder is something else. The NHS describes SAD as a type of depression that usually happens in winter, and it can be properly hard going.
If your mood is low most days, or you’ve lost interest in things you normally enjoy, please don’t just push through it. See your GP. Talking therapies such as CBT can help, and some people do well on antidepressants. The NHS page on SAD is a good, calm place to start reading.
If you ever have thoughts of harming yourself, call 999, or ring Samaritans free on 116 123 at any time of day or night.
What does Chinese medicine say about winter?
Here’s the bit we love. Over two thousand years ago, the Huang Di Nei Jing gave some very specific advice for the winter months. Go to bed early. Get up late. Wait for the sun.
“Retire early and rise late, and wait for the sunlight.”
Huang Di Nei Jing · Su Wen, Chapter 2In Chinese medicine winter is the season of storing. It belongs to the Kidney and the water element, and the whole idea is that we conserve energy rather than spend it. Picture a tree drawing its sap down into the roots for a few months. Nothing’s wrong with it. It’s just resting.
Which is a bit awkward, really, because modern life expects us to run at summer pace all year round. Same hours. Same 7am alarm in the pitch dark. If you asked a practitioner where the winter blues creep in, that mismatch is probably where they’d point.
A few patterns turn up in clinic again and again around now:
| What you might notice | What a practitioner might think about |
|---|---|
| Shattered, cold hands and feet, fancy hibernating till March | Kidney yang running low |
| Flat and a bit snappy, sighing a lot | Liver qi getting stuck, often from too little movement |
| Foggy after lunch and craving bread | A tired Spleen struggling with heavy winter food |
| Lying awake with a busy head | Heart and Kidney out of step with each other |
Of course a table can’t diagnose anyone. Any decent practitioner will want the full picture first. We’ve seen two people walk in with near enough identical complaints and walk out on completely different herbs.
Little things we swear by
Get some morning daylight
Twenty minutes outside before lunch. That’s it, honestly, and it does more than you’d think. Grey skies still count. We know, it doesn’t feel like it.
Nudge bedtime earlier
Nothing dramatic. Half an hour makes a difference, and frankly the classics and modern sleep advice agree with each other on this one.
Move a bit, even when you can’t be bothered
A brisk walk round the block or a bit of tai chi in the kitchen keeps the qi moving. When it stalls, mood tends to follow, so we’d rather you did ten minutes than nothing at all.
Eat warm
Soups and stews over cold salads, basically. Our friends at Phoenix NutriScience have written a lovely guide to food and mood if you fancy going further.
Make evenings softer
Swap the late-night scrolling for a warm cup of something. Our sister company Aura Nutrition makes a range of functional herbal teas with Chinese herbs, and they’re caffeine-free, which makes them a nice part of a wind-down routine. If you’re curious about traditional formulas, Aura’s Mind and Mood range includes classics like Xiao Yao San. Do run it past a practitioner before you start though, and definitely if you’re on any medication.
Talk to someone
A friend, your GP, your practitioner. Saying “I’m finding this time of year hard” out loud helps more than you’d think.
A quick word for practitioners
Late autumn gets busy in clinic. If you’re seeing a lot of low mood, screen for depression properly and keep your referral routes to hand. Check medication before you suggest any herbs. And look after yourself too, because dark evenings don’t skip practitioners. We went into this in more depth in our mental health awareness article.
Thinking of adding herbs to your acupuncture practice? Winter patterns like these are exactly the sort of thing our Diploma in Chinese Herbal Medicine teaches you to work with.
Your questions
Why do I feel so rubbish after the clocks go back?
Your body clock’s basically playing catch-up, and there’s not much daylight to help it. It gets dark earlier, you start flagging earlier, and mornings are a slog for a bit.
How long till I feel normal again?
For most people, a week or two. Still flat or wiped out a month later? Book in with your GP.
What if it’s more than the winter blues?
Feeling a bit slow in winter is normal. If your mood is low most days or you’ve lost interest in things you usually enjoy, it could be SAD, and your GP can help with that.
What does Chinese medicine say about winter?
It sees winter as the season of rest and storing, linked to the Kidney. The classics suggest going to bed early, getting up later and waiting for the sun.
Will a herbal tea help me sleep?
Honestly, a cup of tea won’t fix poor sleep on its own. As part of a calmer evening routine though, lots of people find a warm caffeine-free brew helps them switch off.
Sources
- NHS. Seasonal affective disorder (SAD).
- Huang Di Nei Jing Su Wen, Chapter 2.
Just so we’re clear, this is general information and not medical advice. If you’re worried about your mood or your sleep, your GP is the best first stop.