Why this season is ideal for a psychological and physical reset
By Prof Dr Zoë Chouliara
“Renewal is not about becoming someone new or someone else, but remembering who we truly are and allowing our lives to reflect that. It’s about returning to ourselves.”
Professor Dr Zoë Chouliara
For many of us, winter is a time of endurance rather than flourishing. Short days, limited sunlight, colder weather, seasonal colds, and increased demands can leave us feeling physically tired, emotionally depleted, and mentally foggy. Activity levels often decrease, routines become more restricted, and energy can feel low.
In many ways, we are still “wintering” well into March. The body and mind do not instantly shift simply because the calendar changes. Instead, we gradually emerge from winter’s slower rhythm.
Yet as spring approaches, many people begin to feel a quiet but powerful desire to begin again.
Across cultures and throughout history, spring has symbolised renewal, transformation, and awakening. Festivals and traditions around the world recognise this season as a time to reset and reconnect with life. It represents the reawakening not only of nature, but also of the body, mind, and spirit.
This association is not only symbolic, it is biological and psychological.
The arrival of longer days and increased natural light influences our circadian rhythms, hormone regulation, mood, and motivation. As daylight increases, many of us notice improvements in sleep, energy levels, and overall vitality. Spring therefore creates a natural opportunity for both psychological and physical renewal.
Change, growth, and transformation
When we talk about renewal, it is helpful to distinguish between change, growth, and transformation.
Change refers to adjustments in behaviour or circumstances, altering routines, starting a new habit, or modifying aspects of daily life.
Growth occurs when these changes gradually strengthen our capacities, resilience, or skills over time.
Transformation, however, goes deeper. It involves a meaningful shift in how we understand ourselves, our values, and the direction of our lives. Transformation often arises when we pause, reflect, and realign our actions with what truly matters.
Importantly, meaningful transformation rarely happens through sudden dramatic change. It usually begins with small but consistent adjustments. Over time, these small changes accumulate and create larger, sustainable shifts in how we live and experience our lives.
Spring provides an ideal moment for all three: small behavioural changes, gradual personal growth, and sometimes deeper transformation.
Why Spring supports change
Seasonal changes influence the body and mind more than we often realise. Increased daylight helps regulate sleep-wake cycles and improves mood and alertness. As energy gradually returns, people often feel more capable of making changes that may have felt difficult during the darker winter months.
Behavioural science also describes what researchers call the “fresh start effect.” Certain moments in time, such as a new year, a birthday, or the beginning of a new season, act as psychological landmarks that make change feel possible.
Spring provides exactly such a moment. It offers a symbolic and practical opportunity to reassess habits, priorities, health, and wellbeing.
Moving from survival to thriving
After a demanding winter, it is important not to expect immediate transformation. Renewal usually occurs through small, gradual shifts rather than dramatic change.
Just as nature does not bloom overnight, human energy and motivation return progressively. Instead of trying to overhaul every aspect of life at once, focusing on gentle steps can help rebuild both physical and emotional resilience.
At the same time, it can be helpful to understand what moves us into survival mode in the first place.
Many people have emotional triggers that activate a survival response – such as experiences of rejection, criticism, uncertainty, or loss of control. When these triggers are activated, the nervous system may respond with reactions such as anger, withdrawal, rumination, demotivation, or emotional shutdown.
Understanding our personal triggers can help us recognise when we have moved into survival mode and begin responding more consciously.
Equally important is learning to notice our “glimmers.” These are the small experiences that help the nervous system feel safe, energised, and alive. Glimmers may include moments of connection, creativity, laughter, nature, movement, music, excitement, or simple acts of kindness and affection such as a hug.
Paying attention to these positive cues can gradually help shift the nervous system from survival towards engagement and wellbeing.
It is also important to remember that if you are currently going through a difficult period or crisis, it is entirely natural to be in survival mode. Human beings are not designed to grow constantly. Life includes seasons of endurance as well as seasons of growth. This is not a competition, and there is no requirement to flourish all the time.
Sometimes the most important step is simply stabilising and caring for yourself.
Gentle ways to begin renewing energy
Some helpful starting points include:
Reconnect with natural light – Spending time outdoors during daylight hours supports mood regulation, sleep cycles, and energy levels. Even a short walk in natural light can have noticeable benefits for both mental and physical wellbeing.
Use walking as structural exercise – Walking is one of the most powerful and accessible forms of movement. Recent research shows that regular walking can influence brain chemistry, reduce stress hormones, improve mood, support cognitive functioning a d even prevent illness and prolong life. In this sense, walking acts as a structural exercise, one that gradually reshapes the functioning of the brain and nervous system. And it is free and in your control!
Nourish the body – Spring can be an opportunity to reconnect with physical wellbeing through balanced nutrition, hydration, restorative sleep, and gentle self-care.
Practice self-compassion – Many people emerge from winter feeling that they should have achieved more or been more productive. A more helpful approach is self-compassion, recognising that periods of rest, difficulty, and slower rhythms are part of the human experience.
Cultivate a ‘diet of positive emotions’ – Moments of curiosity, connection, appreciation, calm, humour, and hope act almost like nutrients for the mind. Intentionally seeking these small positive experiences each day can strengthen emotional resilience.
Introduce a gratitude practice – Taking a few moments each day to notice what is going well can gradually shift attention away from threat and towards appreciation.
Clear mental and physical space – Spring cleaning is not only about the home. Taking time to reflect on what feels emotionally heavy, such as unnecessary commitments or lingering worries, can help create psychological clarity.
Adapt to the new season – Small symbolic changes, wearing brighter colours, refreshing parts of the wardrobe, or making changes to our environment, can signal to the brain that a new season has begun.
Book a health check and review medications – Spring can also be a helpful time to review physical health. As routines change and many people begin planning travel or increased activity, it is sensible to ensure that regular prescriptions and medications are up to date and that any chronic conditions are monitored.
Take up something new – Spring is an excellent time to introduce novelty into life. Starting a new activity, whether a hobby, creative pursuit, class, or sport, or even alternate your routine, can stimulate curiosity and motivation.
Create things to look forward to – Humans thrive when they have meaningful experiences to anticipate. Making a list of places you would like to visit, activities to try, or experiences to pursue can create motivation and positive anticipation.
Create a vision board – A simple but effective exercise is to create a vision board representing the experiences and feelings you would like to cultivate. Visual reminders can reinforce motivation and clarify what truly matters.
Reflect on your values and evolving identity
Action without direction can be exhausting and ultimately unfulfilling. Spring offers a natural moment to pause and reflect not only on what we are doing, but on whether our lives still reflect who we are and what truly matters to us.
Over time, our identities evolve. Experiences, relationships, achievements, disappointments, and challenges shape how we understand ourselves and what we value most deeply.
Yet many people continue living according to patterns, expectations, or roles that belonged to an earlier stage of life. When this happens, a quiet sense of dissatisfaction or restlessness may emerge.
Often this feeling is not a lack of motivation, but a signal that there may be a misalignment between our current lives and our evolving identity and values.
Spring provides an opportunity to gently ask:
• Does the life I am living reflect the person I have become?
• Are my daily choices aligned with what truly matters to me now?
• Where might I be living according to old expectations rather than my authentic values?
Living in alignment with our values does not require dramatic upheaval. Often it begins with small, honest adjustments, letting go of commitments that no longer serve us, investing more time in what brings meaning, or gradually moving towards work, relationships, and activities that feel more authentic.
Transformation often begins at the moment we choose to become more truthful with ourselves.
A short reflection pause
Before moving forward into the coming months, you may wish to take a few quiet moments to reflect:
• What part of my life currently feels most aligned with who I am today?
• Where do I sense that something in my life no longer fully fits?
• What small change could bring my daily life closer to my values?
• What would it mean for me to live more truthfully with myself this season?
Even a few minutes of honest reflection can begin to clarify what matters most and where gentle change might begin.
A season for gentle transformation
Transformation rarely arrives as a dramatic turning point, a moment of impact. More often, it begins quietly, with a moment of reflection, an honest question about what truly matters, or a small decision to live more in alignment with who we are becoming.
Spring reminds us that renewal is part of the natural rhythm of life. After periods of rest or survival, growth becomes possible again.
Sometimes transformation begins simply with the willingness to pause, listen to ourselves honestly, and take one small step towards a life that feels more authentic and aligned.
Final reflection
As a psychologist, I often observe that the most meaningful changes in people’s lives do not begin with dramatic resolutions, but with quiet moments of honesty and observation, moments when someone pauses and recognises that the life they are living no longer fully reflects the person they have become.
Spring offers us such a moment: a gentle invitation to reassess, realign, and begin again, one small step at a time.
Professor Dr Zoë Chouliara
Consultant Counselling & Health Psychologist
CPsychol (Health), AFBPsS, FHEA
