Invented by a travel company to sell holidays in 2005, Blue Monday (the third Monday in January) is supposedly the most depressing day of the year due to a combination of bad weather, financial strain after Christmas and failed New Year’s resolutions.

Although it’s since been revealed as merely a publicity stunt – with no scientific evidence to back up the claim – many people relate to factors like these and others affecting their mood in January.

So what are some common reasons why January can be a tough old slog to get through and more importantly, how can we raise our spirits at the start of the year?

Read the Health in Menopause guide to your mood and emotions and start 2025 with greater insight and a wealth of tools to manage your wellbeing.

Craving daylight

We are barely past the shortest day of the year, and for many of us, we’re getting up in the dark and coming home in the dark. In the UK, the sun is rising just after 8:00am and setting around 4.30pm and – according to the BBC weather app – we won’t even be seeing any actual sunshine on the 20th January this year! So it’s no wonder we long to feel the sun’s warmth in January and the first 6 weeks of the year are usually the busiest time for selling holidays.

Studies have shown that exposure to daylight can help regulate mood, bring benefits to your alertness and decision making and fend off anxiety and depression. A lack of  sunlight and vitamin D can, in severe cases, cause seasonal affective disorder, a type of depression that is linked with the seasons.

Tips:

1. Start your day with time outside. A quick walk or just standing in the garden with a cuppa for a few minutes helps stimulate cortisol to get your brain fired up and turn off your sleep hormone melatonin. Your brain may feel sleepy between 1-3pm too, so you could try and get outside again then.
2. Be near a window when indoors or add extra lighting near your face. You may want to try a light therapy lamp if you particularly suffer with low mood in winter.
3. It’s important to take vitamin D as a supplement all year round, as we cannot rely on exposure to sunshine in the UK, not just for our mood but also for our bone health.

Appetite changes and weight gain

For some of us, we may crave more carbohydrate-heavy foods in the colder, darker months. This may be because daylight exposure levels affect our hunger hormones, leptin, which helps you feel full and ghrelin which can increase appetite. Such changes to our diets may lead to weight gain at this time of year, especially after we’ve enjoyed special meals and treats over the festive period.

It’s common to feel down about weight gain while finding it hard to get the motivation to do something about it. This in turn leads to a further lowering of mood and perhaps more comfort eating.

Tip:

Read our guide on staying a healthy weight which is full of tips around having a healthy mindset, what and when to eat, and creating healthy routines around mealtimes.

New Year – new reasons to feel a failure?

This brings us to the broader issue of New Years resolutions and pressure to improve yourself, particularly on social media, that can make us feel like we’re not good enough as we are. 

We are often bombarded in the first few weeks of the year with adverts to join a gym, download an exercise app, buy this expensive supplement, or failing that, just book this holiday and then your life will be better – for those 7 nights in Tenerife at least.

Some people find it helpful to use a new year to refocus and set some goals for their professional life, their health or finances and all power to you if this is you. There’s probably just as many of us however, who absorb the ‘New Year – New Me’ narrative that’s all around us and feel like we are not measuring up to what we ‘should’ be. And this can definitely impact your mood and motivation in January.

Tips:

1. Spend less time doom-scrolling Instagram and more time connecting with others in real life! Honest conversations with friends will be the reality check you need to realise everyone is simply just muddling through and we all have our insecurities, varying aspirations and failures along the way.
2. If you’re going to set a goal, think carefully before you do and aim for something specific, that’s realistic and achievable. Pick something you think you could change for good and incorporate into your usual lifestyle and routines. Give yourself a break if some days aren’t the best, just start again tomorrow.
3. Talk to yourself like you do to your friends. Be kind and compassionate and check what standards you’re placing on yourself.
4. Think about what your values are and focus your goals around these. You may want to learn a new skill, do something that gives back to others, or spend a bit more time reflecting through journalling, counselling, practicing gratitude or mindfulness. These are all proven ways to improve your emotional wellbeing.

Our all-time tips for good emotional and physical health

Do all you can to sleep well

Keep physically active on a regular basis with activities that you enjoy

Eat a healthy, balanced diet

Reduce or cut out alcohol and smoking

Maintain good connections with others

Take regular time out for yourself

So instead of signing off with a ‘Happy New Year’, we wish you a healthy 2025, and hope you continue to be your fantastic peri/menopausal self that is simply doing the best she can with all that life is throwing at her! Not as catchy, but we mean it from the heart… from all at Health in Menopause.

Last updated: May 2026