A very chilly transition into 2022 has us all cuddled up at home. As we are preparing in the Northeast for our first (and maybe last?) big storm of the season this weekend, I started thinking about a conversation I recently had with Nadia Murdock of Nadia Murdock Fit around the concept of “hygge” in relation to overall wellbeing.

The term “hygge” isn’t new in the US, but has never been so strongly embraced as it is in early 2022. As we work through the latest variant of COVID with so much uncertainty about what the future holds for us, we are collectively looking for comfort anywhere we can find it. Many of our usual sources of routine and consistency are not available to us: spas and gyms are closing again in some areas, our favorite restaurants are understaffed and working on limited schedules, we are again distancing from family and loved ones to keep everyone safe.

As independence, self-sufficiency, and even “busy-ness” have become prominent values in American culture over the past few decades, we have all become adept at outsourcing comfort. We go to private yoga or workout classes to get one on one attention, we visit spas and luxurious retreats to escape from the stresses of our lives, we rely on others to prepare nourishing meals on a regular basis.

The overall sense of wellbeing instilled through the hygge trend goes deeper than a temporary feeling of being comforted, it is the comfort of knowing that we are able to create this sense of well-being for ourselves and others despite whatever unknowns may lurk beyond our doorsteps.

How are you incorporating these concepts into your own life these days? If you are caring for teams at work, are you doing anything different to provide comfort to your employees and their families? 

If you are a provider of health and wellness services, what special ways are you incorporating concepts of comfort into your practice? I’d love to hear about it.

Wishing you well, Colleen