The Cure for Cabin Fever - By Sharon Flood Kasenberg

Cabin Fever!

I caught a common ailment
when forced to stay inside;
the snow came down profusely
and patience sorely tried.
The roads weren't safe to drive on;
high winds picked up the stuff,
and blew it willynilly
until I screamed, "Enough!
I'm getting tired of winter -
it's hard to navigate.
Another storm is coming -
I think I'll hibernate!
A day inside sounds lovely,
there isn't much to do...
I'll read and watch the telly - "
One day turns into two.
By day three I am fed up.
My books have all been read.
My screen time is excessive;
more days inside I dread!
I've now got cabin fever
and fear I'll go insane
if I don't take a shower
and indoors I remain.
I do not feel quite human -
my hygiene has decayed -
with others of my species
no contact have I made.
It's time to put my coat on
and into white world go -
to bundle up my body
and shovel out some snow.
The exercise will help me
clear cobwebs from my head.
I'm tired of doing nothing -
so I'll get tired instead!
These ailments caused by winter
are filled with irony -
we say we've got snow blindness
when snow is all we see.
And as for "cabin fever",
it's caused by what's outside.
When winter storms get ugly
we're caged where we reside.
When cage gets claustrophobic,
"hair of the dog" will cure -
We'll only feel improvement
when more snow we endure!
So put on boots and jacket
and go where you must go -
and cure your cabin fever
by going out in...snow.

By Sharon Flood Kasenberg, Feb. 28th, 2020

The winds wail, and the trees blow as I sit and type. It's the third day of snow squalls in my little corner of the world, and I'm suffering from a full blown case of "Cabin Fever". Yesterday, few people ventured out - not even the snow plows - and a whole lot of us probably sat around in our bathrobes until noon. It was an easily justified decision - after all, none of our friends or neighbours were likely to just pop by, since they were all in hibernation mode too.

Yeah - some of the more industrious folk among us probably used the previous two snow days to clean house or get caught up on work they could do from home - but I doubt that I'm alone in spending too much time on my couch reading books and over-indulging in Netflix. You can start out a snowstorm with good intentions, but after a chore or two, it's pretty easy to ask yourself why you're bothering. Motivation wanes for a whole lot of us in the winter, and often completely disappears when you hear the words "snow day".

We Canadians are contrary creatures when it comes to winter. A whole lot of us complain endlessly about having to go out in the cold, but complain just as hard when we're told we should stay in. It's amazing how many things you suddenly feel that you need to do when you can't. Many will thoroughly relish a single day inside, but most will get restless on day two.

I can't speak for the masses, but I know that I have a harder time sleeping when I haven't been out of my house all day. So, by snow day number three I'm tired, cranky and looking a little unkempt. Yesterday I wrote myself a longish "to do" list, and woke up after another sketchy night's sleep feeling impatient to get on with it.

High on that list I've scrawled, "Go outside!" I shower so that I'll feel better if doing so puts me in anybody's path - but also because I'm tired of looking like someone who's been spending too much time wasting time.

I toss my final load of laundry in the dryer and head out to shovel the snow drifts that blocked my back door and left "get stuckable" drifts in the driveway that did manage to get plowed last night. My husband has just messaged me that he's on his way home from Mississauga, and after a white knuckle ride he'll appreciate having one less worry.

The snowy air feels crisp and clean, and I wonder why I didn't venture out sooner. My neighbour pulls into his driveway as I'm finishing up and offers to help me shovel. I tell him I'm just about finished touching up the drifted areas, and we chat for a few minutes before I head out for a short walk. On my way home, I stop by the Post Office, to find that it closed early because of the weather. I trudge home through the snow - still tired, but a bit less cranky.

I get home and finish the poem I started earlier. The ending is quite clear now that I've figured out how to survive "Cabin Fever". It suddenly seems obvious that after a few days of chilling inside my house I'm feeling better because I finally chilled out!

Winter in Ontario can feel endless, but it won't go away any faster if we hide ourselves away inside. It's worth the effort to bundle up and take a walk in the chilly air. Life is too short to stay inside, and hibernating is for bears.