Nourish Your Nervous System This Winter

Posted on in Mindset by Stephanie Coady

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Winter is the perfect season to slow down, turn inward, and give your nervous system the care it deserves. Between busy schedules, parenting responsibilities, and life’s many demands, small moments of calm, joy, and connection can make a big difference.

Our Winter Nervous System Menu offers a playful, nourishing approach to self-care. Think of it as a cozy menu for your mind, body, and spirit, full of little bites of calm, gentle movement, sensory treats, connection, playful joy, and restorative moments.

Whether you’re a parent seeking pockets of peace or someone simply craving grounding rituals, this menu is designed to be flexible, practical, and fun. Pick one or two items from each category – starters, cozy moves, sensory snacks, connection, or sweet calm, and sprinkle them throughout your day.


️ Winter Nervous System Menu ️

Starter – Calm Bites (quick grounding moments)

  • 3-5 deep belly breaths with your morning drink ☕
  • Parent: sing a silly or favourite song with your child
  • Mindful hand massage or stretching fingers
  • Notice one thing you’re grateful for
  • Look outside and name 3 things you see, hear, or smell

Soup & Stew – Cozy Moves (gentle movement)

  • 5-10 min yoga or stretching
  • Parent: living room dance party
  • Gentle walk outside
  • Slow, intentional household chores (folding laundry mindfully)
  • Chair or wall-supported stretches to open chest and shoulders

Sides – Sensory Snacks (engage your senses)

  • Warm drink in hand, feeling the heat
  • Parent: sensory bin, or water play in bath
  • Snuggle under a blanket and notice textures
  • Light a candle or diffuse essential oils ️
  • Listen to music and podcasts
  • Hold something comforting (plush, fidget item)

Main Course – Connection & Play (social and joyful nourishment)

  • Call or text a friend just to laugh
  • Parent: quick game, fort-building, or imaginative play
  • Write a note or send a small kindness to someone
  • Check out a local class (art, workout, market) for co-regulation with people
  • Dance to a favourite song – solo or with kids/pets
  • Share a gratitude moment around the table

Dessert – Sweet Calm (rest and restoration)

  • 5-10 min guided meditation or deep breathing
  • Parent: 10-15 min solo break – book, bath, coffee
  • Cozy reading or storytelling
  • Gentle self-massage (hands, feet, temples)
  • Warm bath or shower with full attention to sensation

☕ Beverage Pairing:

  • Herbal teas, coffee, hot cocoa, or water with lemon
  • Optional ritual: savour slowly, noticing warmth and aroma

These small, intentional practices – savouring a warm tea, stretching, building a fort, or simply noticing the world around you – help your nervous system reset, restore balance, and invite more joy into your winter days.

I’m Stephanie Coady (she/her/hers), a Licensed Counselling Therapist (LCT) with the College of Counselling Therapists of New Brunswick (CCTNB) and a Canadian Certified Counsellor (C.C.C) with the Canadian Counselling and Psychotherapy Association (CCPA). I’m a lifelong Frederictonian; completing my Bachelor of Arts at the University of New Brunswick and my Masters of Education at the University of New Brunswick in Counselling Psychology.