The extroverted energy of summer crowds, travel, light, and color shapes not only the natural world but our mood as well. With autumn, nature draws into its shell, quieting and turning inward; we often do the same. Yet that shift is not always easy.
For many, autumn feels like an ending. Holidays are over, school and work ramp back up, and daylight wanes. These physical changes can also create a kind of inner blur, uncertainty, and a gentle sense of constriction.
Anxiety in the Face of the Unknown
Psychologically, certain experiences tend to intensify during seasonal transitions:
-
Emotional swings: Mood can shift abruptly. One morning you wake with lightness; the next, with a tightness in your chest.
-
Dips in motivation: Summer’s outward momentum can give way to an impulse to withdraw.
-
Seasonal depression (SAD): Increased melatonin production in autumn and winter can lead to depressive symptoms in some people. Light deprivation can also lower serotonin levels, amplifying a generalized low mood.
While these are common passages many of us move through, the impact can be deeper for some. At such times, our stance toward change becomes decisive.
Ways to Make Peace with Change
-
Body clock & light: As days shorten, our circadian rhythm asks for a subtle recalibration. Brief morning exposure to natural light helps resynchronize the melatonin–cortisol cycle, supporting daytime alertness and cognitive clarity. Even a short morning walk can increase parasympathetic balance in the autonomic nervous system, easing that sense of “fog.” As our brain exits “summer mode,” it’s a bit like a phone switching to night mode: the brightness dims, but the content remains—we simply readjust the contrast.
-
Tolerance for uncertainty: Seasonal shifts can trigger intolerance of uncertainty; under gray skies, the mind leaps to worst-case scripts. Cognitive reappraisal helps here: “This lull isn’t laziness; my system is returning to homeostasis.” Observe the thought without mistaking it for fact.
-
Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT): ACT centers acceptance when facing changes we cannot control. Rather than trying to eliminate a feeling or a shift, we learn to live alongside it, because resisting change often doubles its weight.
-
Back-to-work/school psychology: Returning to routines can lower motivation and invite procrastination. Combining behavioral activation with a pleasure–meaning plan is effective: add one micro goal to your week that is both enjoyable and aligned with your values (e.g., a student writes a 10-minute summary after class; a professional lists three action items after a meeting). Completing small tasks delivers dopaminergic reinforcement and strengthens self-efficacy.
That’s why a few simple yet potent steps can soften the autumn blues into a gentler transition:
-
Create an inner ritual: Carry one habit from summer into autumn—say, keep having your morning coffee outdoors, even wrapped in a light blanket.
-
Adopt new routines: Add small self-rituals to the term’s new structure—weekly reading hour, a set walk time, a cozy hot-drink ceremony.
-
Chase the light: Try to be outside during sunny hours. Sunlight supports serotonin production, which powerfully shapes mood.
-
Name your feelings: Clear labels—“Today I feel unmoored”—help disperse the internal haze and foster emotional balance.
Autumn Is Not an Ending, but a Beginning
As we cross from one season to the next, we change alongside nature. And in truth, these shifts are an invitation to face our feelings, slow down, and come closer to ourselves.