Blue Monday & the Winter Blues

How to Survive the Grey Season as a Student

Studying in Groningen, you already know winter hits differently. The sun disappears at 4 p.m., the rain feels personal, and suddenly even getting out of bed feels like the hardest thing to do. Somewhere in the middle of all this, you hear about Blue Monday, which is supposedly the most depressing day of the year.

Whether Blue Monday is scientifically real or not is up for debate, but the winter blues? Very real. And as a student juggling deadlines, money stress, and a social life that mostly happens indoors, winter can feel heavy. The good news is: feeling low during this time doesn’t mean something is wrong with you and there are ways to make it more bearable.

What Even Is Blue Monday?

Blue Monday is usually in January, right when motivation is at its lowest. The holidays are over, studying takes up most of your days, your bank account is recovering from December, and spring break feels very far away. This plus short days, cold weather, and grey skies, and suddenly everything feels a bit harder than usual.

Even if Blue Monday itself is more of a marketing concept than an actual medical diagnosis, it reflects how many people, especially us students, feel around this time of year. 

You’re Not Lazy, Your Brain Is Just Tired

One thing no one tells you is that winter actually messes with your body clock. Less daylight means your body produces more melatonin (the sleep hormone), which can make you feel tired, unmotivated, and sort of foggy in the head. That’s why everything feels ten times harder in January, even if nothing else really changed.

Instead of beating yourself up for not being productive enough, try adjusting your expectations. This might not be the season for peak performance and that’s okay. Focus on getting the basics right: attending your classes, eating regularly and choosing meals that fuel your body and your heart, sleeping enough, and moving your body. 

How to tackle it

When it’s dark most of the day, light becomes incredibly important. If you can, open your curtains as soon as you wake up and try to get outside during daylight hours even if it’s just walking to class instead of biking there. Natural light helps regulate your mood and sleep, and it genuinely makes a difference over time.

Routine also helps more than you’d expect. Winter days can blur together, especially if you’re studying from home. That could be a morning coffee, a fixed study spot with friends, or an evening walk. These routines give your days structure when motivation is low and structure can be comforting.

Take Care of Your Mental Health (Seriously)

If your low mood lasts for weeks, starts affecting your studies, or makes everyday life feel overwhelming, it’s important to take it seriously. Hanze offers free mental health support, and reaching out doesn’t mean you’ve failed, it means you’re taking care of yourself.

Even outside of professional help, small mental health habits help: journaling, limiting all the scrolling, sticking to a sleep schedule, and being kinder to yourself. Winter is already heavy enough, you don’t need to add extra pressure by expecting yourself to function at 100%.