The January Permission Slip: Why Doing Less Right Now Is Exactly Right
Everyone's talking about fresh starts.
New goals. New habits. New morning routines involving ice baths with 5am journaling and green smoothies that cost more than lunch.
And here you are, struggling to get out of bed at a reasonable hour, eating cereal for dinner, wondering why you can't seem to summon the "new year energy" everyone else apparently has unlimited access to.
Here's a thought: maybe you're not behind. Maybe you're exactly where you need to be.
The Myth of the January Sprint
Somewhere along the way, we collectively decided that January 1st is a starting gun. That the calendar flipping means we should immediately transform into optimized versions of ourselves.
But think about what just happened. You survived the holidays - the financial stress, the family dynamics, the emotional labor of gifts and gatherings and navigating complicated relationships. December probably depleted you in ways you haven't fully registered yet.
Now it's dark by 5pm. It's cold. Your body wants to hibernate like every other mammal with any sense.
And instead of honoring that, we're supposed to... join a gym? Start a business? Finally become a morning person?
Which is totally fine if that’s your plan.
But the pressure to "hit the ground running" in January ignores basic biology. Research on circadian rhythms shows our bodies naturally slow down in winter months, with changes in melatonin and energy levels that make rest more necessary, not less.
You're not lazy. You're human, living in a climate that's asking you to slow down while culture screams at you to speed up.
What Your Body Actually Needs Right Now
January in Canada isn't a season for launching. It's a season for recovering.
Your nervous system just ran a marathon called "the holidays." It managed family stress, financial decisions, schedule chaos, and probably several moments where you smiled through situations that made you want to scream.
That kind of sustained activation doesn't reset because the calendar changed. Your body needs time to come down from high alert. To discharge the stress it's been holding. To remember what your baseline feels like.
This might look like:
Sleeping more than usual (not laziness - recovery)
Wanting to stay home instead of socializing (not antisocial - restoration)
Struggling to focus on big goals (not failure - recalibration)
Craving comfort food and familiar routines (not weakness - nervous system care)
These aren't signs you're doing January wrong. They're signs your body is doing exactly what it needs to do.
The Post-Holiday Crash Is Real
There's a phenomenon researchers call "post-holiday syndrome" - a combination of low mood, fatigue, and difficulty concentrating that hits after the holiday season ends.
It makes sense when you think about it. The holidays, whatever your experience of them, involve heightened everything. More stimulation, more emotion, more decisions, more people. When that suddenly stops, the contrast can feel jarring.
Add in:
Less sunlight affecting your mood and energy
The pressure of a "fresh start" creating anxiety instead of motivation
Financial stress from holiday spending catching up with you
The return to regular routines feeling heavier than it used to
No wonder January feels hard. It's not a personal failing. It's a predictable response to a genuinely difficult transition.
When "Doing Less" Is the Actual Work
We've been sold this idea that rest is what you earn after you've been productive. That slowing down is giving up.
But what if rest isn't the reward for work…it's the foundation for it?
What if the most productive thing you can do in January is... not push? Let yourself move slowly. Honor the season your body is actually in instead of fighting it.
This isn't about abandoning goals forever. It's about recognizing that sustainable change doesn't come from forcing yourself to sprint when you're depleted. It comes from building a foundation that can actually hold what you're trying to create.
The people who keep their "new year's resolutions" aren't usually the ones who went hardest in January. They're the ones who started small, stayed consistent, and didn't burn out by February.
Permission Slips You Might Need
You're allowed to not have a "word for the year." You're allowed to enter January without a vision board, a 90-day plan, or a morning routine you found on TikTok. You can figure out what you want as you go.
You're allowed to rest without earning it. You don't need to justify sleep, quiet weekends, or saying no to plans. Rest is not laziness. It's maintenance.
You're allowed to start slow. Or start in February. Or March. The calendar is arbitrary. Your readiness isn't determined by the date.
You're allowed to do the bare minimum for a while. Sometimes just getting through the day is enough. Sometimes surviving is the accomplishment.
You're allowed to feel flat. Not every season is a growth season. Sometimes you're just... wintering. And that's okay.
A Different Kind of January
What if instead of "new year, new you," it was "new year, same you, with more compassion"?
What if January was for:
Catching up on rest instead of setting aggressive goals
Reflecting on what you actually want instead of what you think you should want
Moving slowly and gently instead of sprinting toward transformation
Accepting where you are instead of immediately trying to be somewhere else
The irony is that self-compassion often leads to more sustainable change than self-pressure. When you're not spending all your energy fighting yourself, you actually have resources available for growth.
When January Heaviness Needs More Support
Sometimes what feels like post-holiday sluggishness is something that deserves attention.
If you're experiencing:
Persistent low mood that doesn't lift after a few weeks
Difficulty finding pleasure in things you usually enjoy
Changes in sleep or appetite that feel significant
Thoughts of hopelessness or worthlessness
Struggling to function in daily life
These might be signs of depression rather than typical January blues. And depression is treatable - it's not something you need to push through alone.
Seasonal Affective Disorder affects a significant portion of Canadians, and the symptoms often intensify in January and February. If you're wondering whether what you're feeling is "normal" winter slowdown or something more, talking to a therapist can help you figure that out.
The Gentlest Goals
If you want to set intentions for the year but the typical resolution approach feels like too much, try this:
One thing to protect: What do you want to keep that's already working? Maybe it's a relationship, a routine, a boundary you've set. Start by not losing ground.
One thing to release: What are you ready to let go of? A grudge, an expectation, a "should" that's never served you. Sometimes progress is subtraction.
One thing to explore: Not achieve. Not conquer. Just... get curious about. No pressure to master it. Just permission to try.
Three things. Gently held. No deadlines.
You're Not Behind
Everyone else isn't actually doing better than you. They're just posting their highlight reels while you're living your behind-the-scenes.
The people at the gym on January 2nd? Half of them won't be there by March. The people posting their elaborate goal-setting rituals? Many of them feel just as uncertain as you do.
You don't need to perform productivity to be worthy of the new year. You don't need to transform yourself to deserve good things. You're allowed to enter this year quietly, gently, at whatever pace your body can actually sustain.
January doesn't require your ambition. It just asks you to keep going, however that looks for you right now.
Ready to explore what you actually need this season - without the pressure to perform wellness?