Wintering: When Slowing Down Is Part of Healing

Many of us arrive in counselling feeling frustrated with ourselves for being tired, low, unmotivated, or “not coping as well as we should.” Especially in winter, there can be pressure to keep pushing, stay productive, and power through. But what if this season is asking for something different?

Wintering is the idea that, just like nature, we have cycles. There are times for growth and outward energy, and times for rest, retreat, and conservation. Winter is not a failure of spring. It is a necessary phase.

From a counselling perspective, wintering can be a compassionate reframe. Low mood, withdrawal, or reduced energy may be signals rather than flaws. Your system may be asking for safety, slowness, and care.

When clients allow themselves to “winter,” something often shifts. Self-criticism softens. Expectations become more realistic. There is space to listen rather than force change too quickly.

If this resonates, you might try a brief grounding pause:

Take a moment to notice where your body is supported right now. Feel the contact between your feet and the floor, your back and the chair. Gently name five things you can see, four you can feel, three you can hear. You don’t need to fix anything, you just need to notice.

Wintering doesn’t mean giving up or staying stuck. It means trusting that rest has a purpose. In therapy, this can look like focusing less on “doing” and more on being: noticing emotions without judgement, building routines that soothe rather than push, and honouring limits.

If you’re in a winter season emotionally, you are not behind. You are not broken. You are responding to your life with the resources you have right now.

And, as with the seasons outside, winter does not last forever. But it does deserve to be respected while it’s here.