My Insomnia's Favorite Season

If my insomnia had a favorite season, it would be the spring. 

I live in the midwest, which means that everything outside in the world around us is just starting to wake up. The spring means that leaves are coming back to the trees and the sun is out for more hours a day, and the weather starts to warm up in anticipation of summer.

Life starts anew in March

The month of March, generally, is lovely. During March, things feel new again. I can go outside without my winter jacket. I still might need a scarf, but it feels really good to be less bundled up. We've been inside for the long and dark days of winter during March, and we are aching and anxious for fresh air. During March, we go for short walks around the neighborhood and look at the ways in which life is starting anew.

Feeling lighter and brighter in spring

The days are a little longer in the spring, which means that my restless winter internal clock is stretching and shifting, adjusting to eating dinner again before it's dark out. At the end of the workday, the exhaustion and fatigue feel just a little bit lighter, and this adds some pep to my step.

In the spring, hope feels a little bit brighter. In the kitchen, we tend to transition from heavy and comforting foods like crockpot meals, stews, and soups to lighter, more airy options such as sandwiches, salads, and fruits. In my closet, I find myself trading out sweatshirts for tee shirts and thick socks for thin ones. After what feels like an endless winter every year, I'm always full of optimism and gratitude when the spring rolls around.

Spring and my insomnia

But the best thing about spring?

In the spring, my insomnia tends to play a bit nicer.

There's something about the shift in the air, the shift in the days, and the shift in our moods that helps me to sleep a little bit deeper. There's something about the way my mind and my body feel in the springtime that signals my insomnia, telling it that it's okay to rest. That it's okay to take a back seat, to not announce itself every time it walks into the room, to not require pomp and circumstance every time it turns around.

Celebrating this short season

The sweet March days still have some cold, some chill, and some bite, but they're usually not damp. The dampness and the rain that often come with April make my joints ache. And my insomnia – it's not friends with my pain. In fact, my insomnia finds it completely necessary to show up and show out when pain comes over.

Insomnia needs pain to know it's the number 1 buzzkill around here. So, the spring victory may be short. It may just be a few weeks a year, it may just be during the nice days of March, but it arrives, and it exists, and I celebrate it.

Which season is YOUR insomnia's favorite?

What months, or days, or times of the year make it a little easier for you to slay the beast which is insomnia? I'd love to hear your thoughts below.