The light that enters every day through the window does much more than illuminate. Alicia Vázquez, psychologist at Respira Project, explains why the brain pays it so much attention: “It is one of the main signals that our brain uses to know when we should be awake and when it’s time to rest.” With less light, melatonin, the sleep hormone, rises, and serotonin, the mood hormone, falls.
Not everyone experiences this change in the same way. “There is a great deal of individual variability, so these seasonal changes can affect some people more than others, especially depending on how each organism responds to variations in light exposure,” says Vázquez. But September adds something more than light: “It doesn’t just progressively change the light, it also changes our life. September brings us back all at once to routine, to obligations and to a pace of life that perhaps isn’t always so kind to us.
“There are also many people who experience this change in a positive way and report feeling even better with the arrival of autumn,” nuances Vázquez. Each person experiences it in their own way: character, lived experiences, and the circumstances of that particular moment influence it. It is not rare to find someone who looks forward to autumn, nor someone who immediately associates it with the end of something good. That diversity of responses is, according to Vázquez, as real as the biological influence of light itself.
“Light, temperature, and returning to work do not go their separate ways. “The three factors can influence, but they do not do so in isolation”, but they accumulate and can even reinforce each other, explains Vázquez. Less light alters sleep and energy, the cold reduces time outdoors, and returning to schedules and obligations requires the brain to undergo an adaptation process that takes time.
Three factors that reinforce each other
That accumulation in a short period is what weighs the most. “September, in a sense, concentrates many changes at once”: we leave behind more flexible schedules, resume obligations and responsibilities, the temperature changes, daylight hours decrease, and our habits also shift, explains Vázquez. That concentration of changes is what can provoke more fatigue, stress, or mood variations in some people.
“We are beings who are constantly adapting to changes and need some time to readjust,” notes Vázquez. When should we really worry? “If we see that that fatigue, lack of motivation or sadness persists, is very intense or starts to affect our work, our relationships, our sleep or our ability to enjoy, then it would be advisable to consult a professional.”
Acceptance as a Strategy
Vázquez highlights one concept above all: acceptance. “We live in a society that seems to require us to always feel good, to have energy, to be motivated. But life doesn’t work that way,” she explains. It’s not about resigning oneself, but about stopping fighting against how each person feels: “Perhaps I am more tired now, it’s harder to return to the routine and that’s okay.”
Attention is the second tool she proposes. “Wherever we place our attention, our experience changes,” summarizes Vázquez. Focusing only on what is lost, holidays are over, the alarm clock rings again, makes the return worse. Directing part of that attention toward what also brings well-being—the gym, a familiar coffee, a reunion—changes the experience without the need to feign enthusiasm that isn’t felt.
Is September a real psychological phenomenon or a too convenient label? Vázquez invites us to look carefully. “Giving a name to what happens to us helps us understand it, but at times it can become a way to justify it and stop asking what is really going on,” she warns. The question she proposes to ask herself is direct: “Is what I am feeling really related to September, or is September simply bringing to light something that was already there?” If the discomfort persists or interferes with daily life, seeking professional support remains the best way to find out.
