How To Stay Sane, Rested, and Useful During Hard Times | Katherine May

Winter is coming. The author of Wintering on weathering the cold, dark seasons, literally and otherwise, with rituals, cold-water swimming, reading in the middle of the night, and a lesson from a hibernating dormouse.

Katherine May is the New York Times bestselling author of Wintering: The Power of Rest and Retreat in Difficult Times. She is an internationally renowned writer, podcaster and speaker whose work touches on nature, spirituality, slow living, and neurodivergence; her podcast is The Clearing. Katherine lives by the sea in Whitstable, UK, with her husband, son, and pets.

In this episode we talk about:

• What "wintering" means, and why hard seasons aren't personal failures
• How trees and a hibernating dormouse model surviving the cold
• Katherine's year of cascading disasters while writing Wintering
• The difference between control and agency when the world feels overwhelming
• How fear spreads online like rabbits fleeing danger signals
• Why rest isn't selfish, and how caregivers are denied it
• Rejecting performative rest, ice-bath bros, and biohacked cold-water swimming
• Simple rituals, "first and second sleep," and reading through insomnia

Get the 10% with Dan Harris app here

Sign up for Dan's free newsletter here

Follow Dan on social: Instagram, TikTok

Subscribe to our YouTube Channel

Additional Resources:

This episode is sponsored by: Planet Visionaries: In partnership with The Rolex Perpetual Planet Initiative, listen to or watch Planet Visionaries wherever you get your podcasts.

Instant Hydration: For a better way to stay hydrated, go to instanthydration.com/10happier and use my promo code 10HAPPIER for over 40% off your first subscription order - it's Instant Hydration's best offer available. Vinted: Download the Vinted app for free to start selling with no seller's fees so you keep everything you earn.

OSEA: Go to OSEAMalibu.com and get 10% off your first order with code HAPPIER.

To advertise on the show, contact [email protected] or visit https://advertising.libsyn.com/10HappierwithDanHarris