I’m back from winter break but all I want to do is turn around and head home.
It’s weird being on campus physically but mentally still sprawled out on the couch back at home doing absolutely nothing. My gym bag sits unused in the corner. All of my textbooks are stacked at the exact spot I left them on move-in day. Even leaving my room feels like an Olympic-level task. And the worst part? It’s hard for me to explain this to anyone without sounding lazy.
But here’s the thing, I’m not alone and neither are you.
Brain on Break Mode
Here’s how it really went down during the break:
You were left alone with absolutely nothing to do. You slept in when you wanted, ate whatever and whenever you wanted, spent all day scrolling, and finished a new series in two days.
Your brain got accustomed to being in lower-pressure mode. There weren’t any deadlines, assignments, or meetings that you had to attend.
And then what? Now you’re supposed to just rebound back into routine like a switch being flipped. However, our brain isn’t like a switch. According to the American Psychiatric Association, the combination of post-holiday adjustment and reduced winter sunlight creates a perfect storm for low energy and motivation in January and February.
Getting an opportunity to do nothing was the best thing after a stressful semester. Your brain needed the rest. Now it is resistant to the thought of shifting back to high stimulation and high demand. It is not laziness; it is actually your nervous system protecting the rest it finally got.
Why Time is Moving in Slow Motion
That feeling when you feel like every single second is an eternally long period of time? Where you’re continuously checking the clock because you’re convinced that an hour has lapsed already when in reality it’s been just twelve minutes? There’s logic behind that too.
When we’re stimulated and engaged, time flies. When we’re bored, understimulated, or stuck in a transition, time crawls. The first week back is the worst because you’re caught in limbo; not relaxed enough to be on break anymore, but not energized enough to be productive. You’re just… existing. Existing without momentum makes every minute feel like an hour.
It’s even harder because you know you should be accomplishing things like going to the gym, being on time for class, or just generally socializing.But the gap between what you know you should do and what you actually end up doing feels impossibly wide.
The Guilt That Makes It Worse
But then the guilt creeps in. You feel guilty for:
- Not wanting to see people
- Not being excited about being back
- Feeling irritated by normal campus noise
- Not jumping back into your routine
- Basically existing in your room doing nothing
But here’s the thing: guilt will not speed up the passage of January. It just makes you feel worse about already feeling bad. This is okay. You are simply a person who requires adjustment time.
What Actually Helps
I’m not going to tell you to “manifest good vibes” or “just be grateful.” Here’s what actually works when you’re in the January slump:
1. Lower your expectations (seriously)
Forget “getting back on track” in week one. Your goal this week? Can you leave your room once a day? Can you eat one meal outside? Can you respond to one message? Start there. Small wins build momentum. Expecting yourself to go from 0 to 100 overnight is setting yourself up to feel worse.
2. Accept the in-between feeling
You’re not going to feel motivated right away. That’s okay. You can do things without feeling motivated. Motivation follows action more often than it precedes it. Sometimes you just have to show up and let the energy catch up later.
3. Identify the micro-moments
A ten-minute walk in the daylight. Five minutes of stretching. One episode of something that makes you laugh. These aren’t ever going to solve all of the issues, but they’re something that interrupts the seriousness of doing nothing without requiring too much effort.
4. Talk about it
It’s likely that half your friends feel exactly the same thing, but nobody’s saying anything. Send that text: “I genuinely cannot function right now.” Normalize the struggle. It’s harder being alone than it is being in this slump.
5. Give yourself time
You are not a robot. Your mind needs to adjust from break mode to semester mode. This might take a week. Perhaps two weeks. Both are acceptable. The semester will last, you are not required to start off sprinting.
It’s Not You, It’s January
January feels long because it is long. You’re just adjusting to the entirely different pace of life after having no structure for days, dealing with less sunlight, and realizing that the semester is actually underway regardless of your readiness.
The post-holiday slump isn’t a character flaw. It’s what happens when there’s a big change in routine. In some people’s bodies, a new routine can register in three days. In others, it might take three weeks.
So if you’re reading this in your bedroom, not having left your room in the last two days, wondering why you can’t just carry on, well, you’re not broken. You’re adjusting, and that is a process that is perfectly fine to take its time.
February will arrive. Longer days will come. You will regain your strength. Until then, take care of yourselves. You have the entire semester to go, and it’s okay to pace yourself rather than giving everything all at once.
