New Year’s Resolutions on January 1st? I Think Not.
Image credit: Trader Joe Gourmet Greeting Cards. No artist attribution, Trader J? For shame.
The Babylonians (circa 2000 BCE), the ancient Egyptians (3100 BCE - 30 BCE) and early Romans (753 BCE - 44 CE) all celebrated the new year at the spring equinox, which makes so much sense. The days warm and lengthen. Birdsong sweetens the morning air and my coffee. Crocuses push up energetically through banked snow. The bright spring sun, despite the cold, causes a surge of happiness and energy to rise through me like sap. I become ambitious, new resolutions and plans surging forth organically. And while achieving all my resolutions in the year I make them is unlikely, still, the chance of achieving some of them is good to very good because… energy.
I don’t know about you but my energy level from December through March is low to non-existent. I live in upstate New York just south of the Canadian border. The nights are long—sunset at 4:00 p.m., sunrise at 7:30 a.m.—and it gets ridiculously cold. These are hibernation months. The Icelandic countries actually celebrate the season, beginning on Christmas Eve with a tradition called Jolabokafloo (“Yule Book Flood”). People exchange gifts of books, then spend the evening cozily reading in bed, drinking hot chocolate. Doesn’t that sound delightful? Take it from me: it is! I’ve been honoring this attitude for years, guilt free, for the duration of the winter months. (And on into the rest of the year too, because, why not? As the bookmark a friend gave me says: Sleep is good but reading is better.)
In 45 BC, Julius Caesar introduced the twelve month Julian calendar (replacing the thirteen month lunar calendar aligned with the twenty-eight day menstrual cycle), making January first the official beginning of the year. In 1582, medieval Europe codified January first as the universal new year in alignment with the Gregorian calendar. We have been stuck with this nonsense ever since.
When I was younger, I was able to soldier through this winter energy lull. Like you, I had to. Work. Parenting. Housework. Grocery shopping and cooking. Staying married. How to manage all that when, really, all you want to do is go to ground? Well…, do less. I know, duh. Obvious, yes. But not easy to do. Trust yourself to figure how and what to cut back. It’s sensible to lay low and keep the running around to a minimum. Give yourself some grace. At the very least, don’t make New Year’s resolutions until the spring equinox. But after that? Go for it. You’ll have the energy to succeed.
Both of these books make a cozy winter read, if I do say so myself. Practice, Practice, Practice: This Psychiatrists Life was a 2025 Winner in the Health and Wellness category of the Positive Impact Awards by Infinite Generations Publishing. Their reviewer said: “….The blend of candid reflections, therapy transcripts, and personal experiences makes this book both deeply relatable and surprisingly fun. It’s not just for those in the mental health field,…” Doorknob Bombshells in Therapy: The Deadline, the Brain, and Why It Is Important to End on Time got a nice review in the 2025 July/August issue of BACP Today (British Association for Counseling and Psychotherapy). Is it therapeutic [for a clinician] to always end [a session/appointment] on time? The reviewer concluded, “… my answer remains ‘yes’, but I now have added insight as to why.” The why has to do with how a deadline (i.e. the end of an appointment) helps the brain, specifically the right hemisphere deliver new information against the opposition of the left. The prinicple applies not just to therapy but to any creative process. Curious for more? Get the audiobook half-price through 2/20/26 here. If you prefer to read, buy it here. Enjoy with a cup of hot chocolate!