As the Seasons Change, So Do We

There’s something about this time of year that always gets me thinking. Here on Vancouver Island, the mornings are darker, the days are getting shorter, the temperature is shifting, and the energy of summer is giving way to something quieter. We usually think of that as something happening outside of us. The weather changes, the leaves change, the daylight changes, and we simply adjust, but our biology is adjusting too.

We are constantly responding to the environment around us. Light exposure influences our circadian rhythms, which affect sleep, energy, hormone regulation, metabolism, and mood. As the days become shorter, some people notice changes in motivation, energy, and even the way they feel emotionally.

That makes sense. We are biological organisms, and biology responds to the environment. But I think there’s a second part to that conversation that often gets missed. Our environment isn’t only the weather outside. It is also the environment we create around ourselves every day. Our relationships. Our workload. Our sleep habits. Our physical activity. The food we eat. The amount of stress we tolerate. The conversations we repeatedly have in our own head.

All of that becomes part of the biological and psychological environment we live in. And that is where I think this time of year becomes useful. As summer slows down and we naturally move into a more inward season, maybe there is an opportunity to take inventory. Not in a dramatic way. Not with some huge self-improvement campaign. Just an honest look at what we are reinforcing.

Are we sleeping well? Are we moving enough? Are we spending time with people who actually matter to us? Are we carrying stress that has become so normal we no longer notice it? Are there conversations we’ve been avoiding? Are we doing work that gives us energy, or simply draining ourselves to get through another week? These aren’t small questions. They shape our environment, and our environment shapes us.

That idea sits very close to the work I do through The I AM Project. The whole point is to look at the different areas of our lives and ask whether they are actually working together. Wellness, spirituality, family, relationships, career, finances, and contribution are not really separate things. They influence one another constantly.

If our health is poor, it affects our relationships. If our finances are creating chronic stress, that shows up in our sleep, our mood, and the way we communicate. If our work has consumed every part of us, eventually something else pays the price.

We can be doing very well in one part of life and still be badly out of alignment somewhere else. That’s why awareness matters. We don’t need to fix everything at once. We just need to become more conscious of what we are repeatedly doing and whether those choices are taking us where we actually want to go.

I think the darker months can be useful for that. We spend a lot of time preparing everything else for winter. We change our tires. We adjust our homes. We pull out warmer clothes. We prepare the outside world for the season ahead. Maybe it’s worth preparing ourselves with the same degree of intention.

Protect your sleep. Get outside when there is daylight. Move your body. Stay connected. Pay attention to the areas of life that are quietly drifting. And maybe ask yourself one simple question:

Is the person I am becoming consistent with the person I believe myself to be?

That question has a way of cutting through a lot of noise. The seasons are going to change whether we pay attention or not. Our biology will respond whether we pay attention or not.

The opportunity is to become a little more intentional about how we respond in return.

— David Gilks
Founder, The I AM Project