The weather outside can sometimes have a significant impact on our mood and mental state.

Sunshine can bring feelings of happiness and positivity, while rain may lead to sadness or depression.

Temperature can also play a role in our emotions, with extreme temperatures causing us to feel irritable, agitated, or unmotivated.

Let’s discuss the ways weather affects our mood.

Does Weather Affect Mood?

Does The Weather Affect Everybody’s Mood?

Most are aware that the weather can influence our well-being and mood.  It can vary from person to person depending on preference and associations.

For example, one may feel happier on sunny days because they love going for walks outdoors, while others may enjoy the nostalgia of snow around Christmas time.

Why Does Weather Affect Mood?

The weather affects us on the inside by influencing biological factors such as hormones and the changing of our lifestyle habits.

We can minimize seasonal mood changes and maintain a more consistent mood state using behavioural and nutritional strategies.

Why Do We Feel Happier In Warm Weather?

This can be related to the link between sunlight and our serotonin levels, the hormone that gives us happy feelings.

It’s why people are more likely to develop Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD) when the shorter fall days arrive, and we move into winter with fewer daylight hours.

Can Weather Affect Depression?

Living with seasonal depression means we’re more likely to experience negative effects on our mood because of the weather, especially as the seasons change.

Seasonal Affective Disorder is characterized as a feeling of being down, feeling depressed, and having lower energy during the winter months. It’s also often accompanied by changes in appetite and sleep patterns.

The condition is believed to be due to the lower light levels seen during the winter.  Reduced sunlight may cause a drop in serotonin that can trigger depression.

Does Weather Affect Anxiety?

Warm weather isn’t a cure all for happier moods and lower anxiety.  In fact, increased temperatures cause higher cortisol levels and palpitations, nausea, and fatigue.

Sometimes these symptoms can feel similar to a panic attack and can make us more anxious when we notice them.

Higher humidity levels can also cause symptoms of dizziness and dehydration.

Why Do I Feel Weird When The Weather Changes?

When storms approach and weather fronts change, so does the air pressure.

Atmospheric pressure decreasing can cause body tissues to swell slightly.  This can put increased pressure on our joints and sinuses.

Some people are more sensitive than others to the changes in barometric pressure, also known as atmospheric pressure, which typically decreases when weather conditions worsen.

Lower temperatures also cause blood viscosity, or thickness.  This can affect how we feel physically and mentally.

Why Does Weather Affect My Mental Health?

More sunlight exposure may prompt a shift in our neurotransmitter levels, often leading to positive mood changes.

Rapidly rising temperatures could potentially trigger a mood episode, particularly for people with bipolar disorder.

Higher pollen counts may prompt inflammation in the brain and could lead to worsened mental health symptoms.

How Does Weather Affect Human Behaviour?

It would seem that weather can affect our moods, temperaments, depression and overall outlook.

As such, it can also affect people’s personalities.

While mildly warm temperatures may seem pleasant, soaring hot temperatures can cause people to become aggressive.

How Do You Not Let Weather Affect Your Mood?

If a lack of sunshine is keeping you down, try to get yourself outside to help turn your mood around.

If there is little to no natural light in your indoor space, you can purchase a light box that mimics natural light.

If you suffer from depressed moods during the winter months, pay extra attention to eating healthy, getting enough exercise, and sleeping regularly.

Final Thoughts

What about you, do you notice a change in the way you feel when the weather shifts?  

If so, you’re seemingly not alone, and you’re not imagining it.  Let me know your thoughts in the comments.

I’d like to think I’m not easily swayed by weather, but after researching this topic, I’m interested in paying more attention to how I feel during the changing seasons.

I work afternoon and evening shifts, and I have a morning routine that always includes getting outside rain or shine, I feel like it lifts my mood.

Thanks for reading, have a great day.

Sources and other reading:

Why Weather Affects Your Mood

What Are The Benefits Of Hiking?

Is Being Cold Healthy?

Does Shift Work Affect Our Health?

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