By mid-January, I often see (and feel!) the crash.
The holidays are over. The lights are packed away. The calendar is suddenly full again.
Life has returned to its regular pace. In many ways things feel clearer, calmer, more structured.
But for many people, there seems to be a mismatch with the rhythm of life in January and the rhythm of their nervous systems.
Instead of renewed energy, there’s a sense of heaviness. Instead of motivation, there’s fog. Instead of momentum, there’s an odd mix of exhaustion and restlessness — as if your body wants to move forward but can’t quite find the gear.
People often describe struggling to concentrate or make simple decisions, carrying tension, and wanting tomake changes but feeling strangely blocked
Because January is culturally framed as a month of discipline and renewal, these experiences often lead us judge ourselves and feel like failures .
What’s wrong with me? Why can’t I just get back on track?.
But from a neuroscience perspective, this all makes complete sense.
What many people experience in mid-January is not a motivation failure but a predictable nervous system response after a prolonged period of activation.
This is January nervous system burnout — and it’s remarkably common.
Why January is especially hard on the nervous system
January places a unique and often underestimated load on the nervous system. Several forces converge at once — biological, psychological, environmental, and cultural — creating a perfect storm for dysregulation.
1. Post-holiday nervous system depletion
For many of us, mid November through early January requires our nervous systems to work in overdrive.
The holiday season brings:
- Increased social interaction and sensory input
- Disrupted sleep and inconsistent routines
- Heightened emotional labor and relational navigation
- Elevated cortisol and adrenaline to keep up with demands
Stress hormones are remarkably effective. They allow us to override fatigue, push through long days, and stay emotionally responsive even when resources are limited.
But they are not meant to be sustained. The systems that keep us going when stress increases were designed to support us through intense bursts, not ongoing demand.
By mid-January, the body begins to reduce this stress-hormone output. Cortisol and adrenaline naturally decline, and the nervous system attempts to return to baseline.
What follows is a neurochemical drop-off.
This drop is often experienced as fatigue, low mood, emotional flatness, or lack of motivation — not because something has gone wrong, but because the body is finally trying to recover.
This isn’t collapse.
It’s the nervous system saying: I can’t run on emergency power anymore.
2. The pressure of abrupt change
With the start of a new year, January is commonly seen as a time for reinvention.
New habits. New routines. New standards. New versions of ourselves.
Neurologically, however, rapid or rigid change is not inherently effective or motivating — especially when the system is already depleted.
It’s like cramming for a test- you might pass the exam but you’re not likely to hold onto the content.
Additionally, when expectations feel overwhelming or punitive, the brain may interpret them as threat rather than opportunity.
Instead of activating motivation circuits, the nervous system may shift into protective states such as:
- Freeze (feeling stuck or unable to start)
- Shutdown (low energy, numbness, disengagement)
- Procrastination (avoidance as self-protection)
- Cognitive fog (reduced executive functioning)
These states are not signs of laziness or lack of discipline.
They are the nervous system applying the brakes to prevent further overload.
3. Winter biology works against modern expectations (and vice versa!)
January also brings physiological challenges that people often underestimate.
Reduced daylight disrupts circadian rhythms and affects serotonin and melatonin production, influencing mood, sleep quality, and cognitive clarity.
Cold temperatures increase physical and neurological constriction, subtly signaling the body to conserve energy rather than expend it.
For most people, movement decreases due to weather keeping folks indoors more often, which limits one of the nervous system’s most reliable ways of releasing stress and restoring balance.
Historically, winter was not a season of maximal output. Across cultures, it was a time for conservation, reflection, and repair.
Modern life, however, asks for peak performance year-round.
Your nervous system feels that mismatch and reacts - no matter what you, or the demands of our modern culture, want.
Start with Self-Acceptance
January burnout is not a sign that you’ve failed to reset, recommit, or get yourself together.
It’s a sign that your nervous system has been carrying a heavy load through the darkest, coldest, most demanding stretch of the year—and is now asking for a different kind of support.
When we understand this, something important shifts. The question stops being “How do I push myself through this?” and becomes “What does my nervous system need right now to recover?”
Modern culture tends to answer that question with more effort: more planning, more discipline, more strategies layered on top of an already tired system.
But humans didn’t always respond this way.
Long before neuroscience, productivity culture, or New Year’s resolutions, people faced winter, scarcity, and stress every year—and they developed amazingly effective ways to regulate their bodies without forcing change.
One of the simplest, most powerful tools they used didn’t involve thinking harder or doing more.
It involved how they used their eyes.
In the next Sacred Saturday, we’ll explore a long-forgotten form of nervous system regulation—one that requires very little energy, works even when you’re exhausted, and is now being rediscovered through modern neuroscience.
If January feels heavy, foggy, or stuck, this next piece offers an unexpectedly gentle way through.
TL;DR – Part 1: January Burnout
January burnout isn’t a motivation problem—it’s a nervous system response. After weeks of stress, stimulation, and winter biology working against us, the body naturally slows down. Fatigue, fog, and low momentum are signs your nervous system is trying to recover, not signs you’re doing something wrong.
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Begin Within
and align with the rhythm of nature and self.
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