Summer is over, September is here and with it the weight of returning to routine. The Righeiras sang it clearly in the 80s: August is shit. We put away our bikinis and shorts, dust off our coats and get ready to face office days and attend to our obligations. The result: anxiety, sadness and a melancholy that is difficult to avoid. Like everything that comes to an end, be it a romance or a stage, the end of summer leaves us in that limbo between nostalgia for what is gone and fear for what awaits us. This is not just your perception, TikTok is full of users who express their hatred towards this month, reflecting a collective malaise; even experts confirm that this slump has a scientific explanation.
August is like an eternal Sunday that never ends. According to psychologists, the “August Blues” are the older brother of the “Sunday Blues,” that feeling of angst that arises at the end of the weekend when routine looms. Carly Harris, a therapist, describes it as the moment when reality hits you: “August marks the end of a period of freedom and the inevitable return to routine.” Psychiatrist Stephen Ferrando also points out that, unlike the Sunday Blues, the August malaise lasts a whole month and affects both those who love summer and those who wish it were over. This feeling, which ranges from a kind of FOMO to guilt for not having enjoyed it enough, is common at this time and further fuels that feeling of emptiness.
Although it may seem similar to Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD), it is not the same. Although August also brings changes in light, with shorter days and affects our circadian rhythms and contributes to these mood swings, unlike SAD, this discomfort does not last beyond the season and does not require a clinical diagnosis. It is a transient discomfort that does not require a diagnosis, but it still affects us. Experts call them “subclinical disorders”, that is, transient episodes of discomfort.
How to turn this blues around?
Although it’s not a formal disorder, the August blues shouldn’t be ignored. Rachel Annunziato, a psychologist at Fordham, suggests embracing the blues instead of fighting them. It’s okay to feel nostalgic at this point in the year, but there’s also time to squeeze in what’s left of summer: going to the beach, hanging out with friends, or just enjoying an ice cream while you still can. At the same time, it’s a good idea to start looking ahead to what fall brings: cozy vibes, pumpkin spice, and vampire movies. Because if one thing is clear, it’s that the only way to shake off the “August Blues” is to live the present to the fullest and plan a future full of moments that motivate us to keep going.
The Instagram accounts you should follow to live an endless summer.
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