If you feel lower in January and find yourself trying to “get going” without much success, it’s easy to assume something has gone wrong.

You might notice a familiar line of questioning:

• Why am I not feeling more motivated?
• Shouldn’t I be functioning better by now?
• Is this a failure of discipline or planning?

Often, those explanations don’t quite fit the experience.

January low mood is common, predictable, and shows up even in people who enjoyed their break, care about their work, and are functioning well. It’s usually not a failure of effort or attitude.

Often, it’s not a motivation problem

Research on stress and recovery consistently shows something counterintuitive: mood and energy often dip after sustained effort, not during it (McEwen & Akil, 2020; Sonnentag & Fritz, 2015).

While people are busy, the nervous system stays mobilised. Attention is directed outward. Feelings that can’t be dealt with immediately are deferred. This is not avoidance so much as prioritisation.

When demands ease, that containment loosens.

January is often the first point in the year when people stop running and notice what they’ve been carrying.

What shows up when things slow down

This delayed response is well documented in stress and recovery research, where symptoms often emerge after sustained demand rather than during it (McEwen & Akil, 2020; Sonnentag & Fritz, 2015). Physiological arousal does not switch off on command, and emotional processing often follows effort rather than coinciding with it.

What surfaces can include:

• fatigue that was postponed
• disappointment or grief that had no space earlier
• awareness of strain in work or relationships
• a sense of flatness once stimulation drops

None of this means something is wrong with you. It reflects delayed processing in a system that has been working hard.

This also helps explain why January can feel harder than December. The holidays may reduce demands, but they are also socially dense and structured. Once they end, both pressure and buffering drop away at the same time.

Why pushing harder often backfires

When low mood is framed as a motivation problem, the instinctive response is to push harder: stricter routines, bigger goals, more self-discipline.

For some people, that works briefly. For many, it increases strain and self-criticism.

If the feeling is coming from delayed processing rather than lack of effort, pressure is unlikely to improve it. Understanding what has surfaced is often more effective than trying to override it (Sonnentag & Fritz, 2015).

Not necessarily depression

It is important to name what this experience is not.

Most people experiencing January low mood do not meet criteria for major depressive disorder. For many, the experience is transient, context-linked, and settles as rhythms stabilise (McEwen & Akil, 2020).

Pathologising this period can increase shame and hyper-monitoring, which tends to worsen mood rather than improve it.

That doesn’t mean January low mood should be ignored. It means it should be understood accurately.

A different question

If you keep asking, “Why can’t I get going?”, you’ll usually get answers that point toward self-blame.

A more useful question is often:
“What is becoming noticeable now that things have slowed down?”

For some people, that points to genuine fatigue and the need for more recovery. For others, it highlights misalignment, overload, or lack of support that was easier to tolerate when everything was moving faster.

January doesn’t usually break people.
It often shows them something they didn’t have time to see.

If you want practical support

For many people, January low mood settles as routines return and demands rebalance. For others, what surfaces may benefit from support or steadier structure rather than more pressure.

If this article resonates, the following resources may be useful starting points:

• Beyond Blue
  Clear, practical information on low mood, stress, and anxiety, including when additional support may help.
• Lifeline
  24/7 support if things feel overwhelming or you need to talk outside usual hours.
• Blue Knot Foundation
  Resources for people whose low mood connects to cumulative stress, trauma, or long-term strain.
• Religious Trauma Collective
  Information and support for people whose low mood is connected to spiritual harm, high-control groups, or faith-based trauma.
• QLife
  Peer-led support for LGBTQIA+ people, including referral pathways, and community connection.
• Your GP or a registered counsellor or psychologist
  Particularly if low mood is persistent, worsening, or starting to affect work, relationships, or daily functioning. If you are looking for counselling support, my practice, Steady Ground Counselling Services, is one option. Bookings can be made via the website https://www.steadyground.au/ or by calling (03) 7003 2550.

Seeking support does not necessarily mean something is “wrong”. Often it reflects a decision to respond thoughtfully to what has become visible, rather than pushing past it.

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References

McEwen, B. S., & Akil, H. (2020). Revisiting the stress concept: Implications for affective disorders. Journal of Neuroscience, 40(1), 12–21. https://doi.org/10.1523/JNEUROSCI.0733-19.2019

Sonnentag, S., & Fritz, C. (2015). Recovery from job stress: The stressor–detachment model as an integrative framework. Journal of Organizational Behavior, 36(S1), S72–S103. https://doi.org/10.1002/job.1924