How to stay positive amid colder days, longer nights
I am one of those people who is absolutely obsessed with fall. I love leaf peeping, pumpkin-flavored foods, warm stews, sweaters, apple-picking, hayrides and Halloween. I hate the summer heat, so as the temperatures drop in September and October, I feel like I can finally leave my house and appreciate the outdoors.
But as wonderful as fall is, the cooler months come with their own challenges. As my husband puts it, cooler temperatures reminds us that cold and frigid ones are coming in winter. And as the seasons change, the daylight lessens. Soon daylight savings (Nov. 7 this year) time will plunge many of us into darkness in the early evening and afternoon, which can affect our mental health.
So yes, I embrace flannel shirts and warm apple cider, but I also feel the affects of the seasons on my anxiety and depression, and I try to do things to combat the mood swings colder, darker days can bring. One thing that has helped, on advice of my doctor, is light therapy during the fall and winter. Light therapy is when you sit near a source of strong artificial light that mimics outdoor natural light, and is used to treat seasonal affective disorder and depression occasionally. I've found it very effective. I'm also trying to pay more attention to my mood, understand if it's changing and be gentle with myself. And embrace some of the positives of an early sunset: Sometimes it helps me get a little more sleep.
From Gabby Petito to Tyga to 'MAID': 'I don't know how many moments we have to have before it matters'
In the last couple of months, there have been a number of high-profile incidents of domestic abuse in the news. My colleague Alia Dastagir wrote about it, and how the public conversation about domestic violence can and should change.
The murder of Gabby Petito has received overwhelming media attention. Bodycam footage and a 911 call before Petito's death raised questions about possible domestic violence issues between Petito and her boyfriend Brian Laundrie, a person of interest in her death whose remains were found Wednesday in a Florida wilderness park. Rapper Tyga, real name Michael Stevenson and famously the former beau of Kylie Jenner, was arrested last week after an ex-girlfriend shared photos of his alleged abuse to her Instagram Story. The hugely popular series "MAID," which premiered on Netflix this month, explores the lesser understood dimensions of emotional abuse.
One in 3 women has experienced intimate partner violence, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
"I don't know how many moments we have to have before it matters," said TK Logan, a professor at the University of Kentucky whose research focuses on intimate partner violence, specifically stalking. "I've been studying this for almost 30 years and the attention comes in waves. It's good to talk about it. I don't mean to minimize that, but we have to do more than talk. We need to start helping women."
The term is "domestic violence," but what does it mean? What do we understand and what do we still refuse to see? As advocates and survivors try to explain, on this Domestic Violence Awareness Month and every other opportunity they get, this abuse isn't just black eyes and bloodied noses. It's control and degradation, a sickness in the belly, terror in the night. It's the partner who scrutinizes what you eat, monitors what you spend, who you talk to, when you come home and especially when you leave. It's eggshells on every floor. It's guilt and gaslighting.
It's time, experts say, for society to stop asking, "why didn't you leave?" when the questions really should be, "why is it so hard to?" "why does he hurt you?" "why did you feel you had to stay?"
Read the full story here.
Today's reads
I wrote about why "Squid Game" and other TV hits, like "Ted Lasso" or "Only Murders in the Building," prove that Hollywood should make fewer remakes and more original stories.
This princess married a commoner and lost her royal status for love.
New U.S. travel systems starting November 8 will affect Americans, too.
Everything you need to know about tonight's World Series Game 1.
Today's pet
Meet a little ball of fluff.
"This is Zoe, a 6-year-old Shitzu/Chihuahua mix," says owner Lee Whitaker. "She came to us two months ago because her previous family had too many other obligations to keep her. I have always had a little girl dog, until my last one passed away four years ago. Zoe has filled a big hole in my heart! She also gets along with her 'big brothers.'"
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: How to stay positive amid colder days, longer nights
