Navigating Seasonal Changes: Supporting Your Mental Health as Fall Begins

As the leaves start to change and the air grows crisp, you might notice something shifting inside you too. Maybe you’re feeling more tired than usual, dreading the shorter days ahead, or feeling unexpectedly emotional as the summer weather fades away.

If you’re a young adult navigating college life or stepping into independence, or a parent watching your young adult child struggle with these transitions, I want you to know: what you’re experiencing is real, and you’re not alone.

Why Does Fall Feel So Heavy?

Let’s face it, fall isn’t just about pumpkin spice and cozy sweaters. For many, autumn brings a perfect storm of stressors. You’re adjusting to new academic schedules, possibly navigating a new campus or workplace, dealing with the pressure of “fresh starts,” and experiencing significantly less sunlight as the days grow shorter.

For some, these changes can trigger Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD). But even without a clinical diagnosis, this seasonal transition can seriously impact your mental health. Your brain is responding to real changes in light exposure, which affects your circadian rhythm, sleep patterns, and mood-regulating chemicals like serotonin.

The bottom line? Your feelings aren’t “all in your head”. They are a natural response to genuine environmental changes.

Things You Might Be Noticing

If you’re experiencing any of these signs, pay attention. They matter: You might be sleeping more but feeling exhausted. Your motivation to see friends or do activities you typically enjoy might be fading. Maybe you’re feeling more irritable or anxious, or finding yourself crying more easily. Perhaps food is becoming a comfort mechanism, or you feel disconnected from yourself and others. These aren’t character flaws or signs of weakness. They’re your body and mind responding to real shifts in your environment and routine.

Practical Tools That Can Help

As someone who specializes in DBT, EMDR, and CBT, I want to share evidence-based strategies that have helped my clients successfully navigate these seasonal transitions.

1) Get Strategic About Light

Your brain needs light to regulate mood. It sounds almost too simple, but getting outside for 20-30 minutes in the morning can make a real difference. Step outside and provide yourself with vitamin-d. When natural light isn’t available, a light therapy lamp used for 20-30 minutes each morning can help regulate your body’s internal clock.

2) Practice Opposite Action (A Core DBT Skill!)

When depression or anxiety tells you to isolate and withdraw, that’s exactly when you need connection most. Opposite action means doing the opposite of what your emotional urge is telling you to do, not because your feelings don’t matter, but because you’re choosing not to let them make all your decisions.

Feeling like canceling plans? That’s your cue to go anyway. Want to stay in bed all day? That’s the moment to get up and move your body. This skill takes practice, but it’s incredibly powerful.

3) Build a Routine That Supports You

One of the biggest challenges in fall is losing summer’s flexibility. Instead of resisting structure, create one that actually works for your wellbeing. Schedule self-care like you would any important appointment: block out time for adequate sleep, regular meals, movement, and social connection.

Consistency in your daily routine helps stabilize mood more than you might realize.

4) Challenge Unhelpful Thoughts (CBT in Action)

Fall often brings catastrophic thinking: “I can’t handle another semester,” “I’ll never feel happy again,” “Winter is going to be unbearable.”

When you notice these thoughts creeping in, pause and ask yourself: Is this thought helpful? Is it accurate? What evidence do I actually have for this prediction? What would I tell a friend who was thinking this way?

Sometimes our thoughts are like that one friend who always predicts disaster. You can acknowledge them without letting them run the show.

5) Prioritize Connection

This is crucial and often the first thing to slip when we’re struggling. Your brain might tell you that you’re burdening others or that isolating is just easier. But connection is protective for mental health it is not optional, it’s essential.

Text that friend you’ve been meaning to reach out to. Call your parent or sibling, even if just for five minutes. Join that club or group you’ve been considering. Connection doesn’t always have to be deep or intense; sometimes just being around others is enough.

For Parents: How to Support Your Young Adult

If you’re a parent noticing changes in your teen or young adult, you might feel unsure how to help. Here’s what I want you to know:

Your role isn’t to fix their feelings: it’s to create space for them to exist. Ask open-ended questions like “How are you really doing?” or “What’s been hardest about this transition?” Then listen without immediately jumping to solutions or trying to talk them out of their feelings.

Watch for warning signs that go beyond typical seasonal adjustment: significant changes in sleep or eating patterns, complete withdrawal from activities and relationships, mentions of hopelessness or not wanting to be here, self-harm behaviors, or increased substance use. These warrant professional support.

Remember, therapy isn’t just for crisis. It’s maintenance for wellbeing. Sometimes the most supportive thing you can do is help remove barriers to getting support, whether that be  financial, logistical, or emotional.

When to Reach Out for Professional Support

You don’t have to wait until you’re in crisis to seek help. In fact, reaching out before things become overwhelming is one of the strongest, most proactive things you can do for yourself.

Consider therapy if:

- Seasonal changes consistently impact your daily functioning
- You’re using unhealthy coping mechanisms to get through the day
- Your relationships are suffering
- You’re feeling stuck and need concrete tools to navigate this season more effectively
- Your teen or young adult is showing concerning changes in mood or behavior

At Healing Hearts Healthy Minds, I work with teens ages 13-24, young adults, and their parents throughout New Jersey, Delaware, Pennsylvania, and Connecticut via virtual sessions. Using evidence-based approaches like DBT, EMDR, and CBT, we can develop a personalized plan to help you not just survive seasonal transitions—but actually thrive through them.

I understand the overwhelming feeling that you’ve exhausted every option. The sense of desperation, the weight of unresolved pain. But I’m here to tell you: healing is possible. Your story isn’t over - it’s just beginning.

Fall doesn’t have to be something you just endure. With awareness, practical skills, and support when needed, it can become a season of genuine growth. You deserve to feel good, not just in summer, but all year round.

Together, we can create a path forward. You are not alone. Your healing starts here.

*Ready to take the next step? I offer a free 15-minute consultation to see if we’re the right fit. You can schedule a consultation. *Denise Takakjy, PhD, LPC-PA, LPC-NJ, LPCMH-DE, NCC, C-DBT, CATP, BSL*