WHY THIS CONCEPT IS SIGNIFICANT FOR HUMANS?

We all know what wintering means in the context of evolutionary biology and animal behavior. Through the years, we learn that some animals retreat and go in some kind of winter sleep and others drive their energetic level on the basic survival mode. But do we really know that wintering applies to humans too? I am not sure that we know but I am sure that we all feel it when we are in middle of it.

The concept “wintering” is shaped and designed by podcaster and bestseller writer, Katherine May, that changed the global belief about slowly living. Her book Wintering is exactly what we need to understand the naturally designed decline of humans during the winter months:” It is characterised by a natural pull toward withdrawal, stillness, and reduced social or professional engagement. While modern life often treats this as a problem to be fixed, wintering is a functional state of ´powering down.´ It is a recognition that the mind requires periods of psychological rest to recover and sustain future growth. This process is often a biological response to an overstretched system. Unlike a holiday or a weekend break – which are often just pauses in activity – wintering is a deeper, longer-term period of emotional and cognitive replenishment. It allows the mind to inhabit a state of lower demand, giving the nervous system the time it needs to consolidate experiences and restore depleted resources. By accepting this cycle, we allow the psyche to do the quiet, background work that is impossible to achieve during periods of high-intensity performance.” ( acc. Thea Psychology)

So, isn’t that amazing? We ignore this fact and try to steal the rules of nature and to play our own that work against us. It is a reason why our ancestors recognized the environmental changes and behaved according to the cycles of nature. The modern homo sapiens doesn’t know that sometimes is good to be on off side and to slow down, to save energy for future growth.

We shall not forget that our body has two mechanisms that are used for existence: the sympathetic nervous system and the parasympathetic nervous system. The first is built for threat activation and survival options. The second one is designed for slow rest and digest actions. Both are equally important since our bodies shift from one to another and from time to time, to allow us to save our mental and physical state. Now, imagine when you are busy all the time, your brain loses all capacity to process the available or given information since it is running limits with no chance of recovery. It is like fitness training; you need break between muscle growth.

So, wintering is reply to your accumulated stress and survival mode that is exhausting you for so long. It could be anytime if not followed accordingly. It is like prevention from burning out so we must hear of us and our needs.  In people´s world, this word is not connected so much with winter months but it is natural and product of evolution. Now it can be used for each time our mind needs break from external and focus on internal setting up and fabric restart, after big challenges and stress fight.

The biological term has been transferred into psychological field to show us that we need wintering to settle us the best way we can. In animal world, creatures drive their capacity down and conserve energy to be able to survive harsh winter conditions. Humans, on the other hand, enter the wintering to be able to come through the challenges and mostly in winter months, when depression often comes out from great expectations at the end of the year and follow disappointment, when nothing really changes.  It is not only linked to the dark calendar season and lack of energy but also with withdrawing from the pulse of world trying to calm down own demons.

Nature shows us that each principle there has its base, and reason why it is there. The animals know how to behave in certain situations and seasons, without learning about it but following ancient system. Why can’t we? Why must we always think what it will be like if we withdraw and go with wind in our own inside world? Maybe it will be perfect after, maybe it will be perfect as ever, maybe not. Maybe we wont survive our own soul´s winter but most probably we will come after stronger and more powerful. Nature knows something we never did or forget it.

Wintering is not always nice process but necessary process. It is painful, difficult and demanding but still promising way of finding ourselves in stillness and slow processing of life changes, emotions and expectations. Winter has its own light and that is contemplation or our ability to lead that in cold winter months and to embrace it as the way out. We must accept that winter is not against us but with us to prepare our body and mind for exciting summer. It is proof that everything happens for a reason, including short days and longer nights. You accept daily light and enjoy rare sunshine, but you learn that good things and bad things are the dynamic part of life. I wouldn’t even call bad things despite fact that I do not fancy coldness. Oh yes, I am winter child but call for long summer days. Anyway, when I get into nature and breathe in cold air and feel cold sun that is kissing me, I also feel peace and harmony with myself. I feel like I am not rushing or chasing anything but hearing myself and the still world around me and in me.

There are many possibilities for you to practice wintering and to heal your mind and body. It is a great tool for us busy human bees. It is a present from nature to us, but we overlook it and even ignore it. Why? I don’t know. I only know that we haven’t been born for stressful schedule and run through the days and nights but for slow life and slow enjoyment of life. I guess that the whole stress and burnout epidemic come from unsettled expectations in the greedy world. You can’t do it or you will lose all you have and even more, yourself. You can pretend that wintering is a great thing, as it is really, and use the advantages of it to repair yourself for coming months of wild summer. Try to optimize your schedule, to put quality over quantity in social relations, to eliminate toxic people and toxic thoughts to replace them with positive self-contemplation attempts. You can even start writing journal in cozy part of your house. Don’t forget to spend time in nature and to confront cold. At the end, you will confront your comfort zone.

So, just to assume that wintering can you practice even in the middle of hot summer. For us human beings, it is not always connected with winter months but with our dealing with challenges, risks and problems. It is our reply to collected issues and questions we have never asked, the pain we have never shared, the emotions we have never felt. It is proof that we live, think and want to survive after we go to retreat.  Nature doesn’t fight the winter so we shall not do it either. We can learn from winter to embrace growth even if it is painful sometimes, or dark or everything at the same time. It is our ancient way out, instinct to overcome struggles. It is made for us and with us, use it smart.