5 Ways Illinois Winter Won’t Let Seasonal Depression Kick Your Butt

If you live in Illinois, especially here in Rockford, you already know: winter isn’t a season, it’s a character-building hostage situation. The sun leaves town, the wind attacks our faces, and suddenly we’re Googling “Can a human hibernate?” while clutching a Culver’s ButterBurger like it's medicinal.

But good news, your brain has built-in “happy chemicals,” and we can trick them into showing up… even when it’s January, pitch-black at 4:30 p.m., and your car refuses to start because it’s “too cold to live.”

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Ways Illinois Winter Won’t Let Seasonal Depression Kick Your Butt

And BIG THANKS to my wife, a mental health therapist, for helping create this list.

Dopamine: The “I Actually Did Something” Chemical

• Make a tiny to-do list and cross stuff off.
• Yes, “took a shower” counts.
• Bonus: Eat tyrosine-rich foods like eggs, chicken, salmon, or bananas.
• Culver’s doesn’t technically list “mood enhancement” as a benefit of cheese curds, but I feel science would back me.

Oxytocin: The “I Like Humans Again” Hormone

• Hug someone.
• Cuddle your dog.
• Compliment a stranger’s coat, we all need warmth out here.
• No pets? That’s what TikTok puppy videos are for.

Serotonin: Fake Summer Until It’s Real

• Get outside when the sun shows up (once every seven business days).
• Or grab a light therapy lamp; it’s cheaper than moving to Florida.

MORE: 28 Things People of Illinois Look Forward To Most In the Fall

Endorphins: Laugh, Move, Repeat

• Funny movie
• gym session
• snow-shoveling rage… whatever works.
• Exercise counts even if you're just power-walking to your car in negative windchill.

MORE: 5 Best Illinois Places To Boost Your Serotonin Levels

✅ Your DOSE Cheat-Sheet

Dopamine: complete tasks, healthy foods

Oxytocin: hugs, pets, humans (the nice ones)

Serotonin: sunlight, nature, meditation

Endorphins: laugh, move, survive shoveling

Cold, dark days don’t get the final word — you do.

Tell me your go-to mood booster. And if it involves cheese curds, same.

Find more info on SAD here.

READ MORE: 13 Things That Will Make Winter Suck Less in Illinois