So, the other day whilst Michael and I sat together eating our chicken salad at lunchtime, my dear husband started to tell me all about Blue Monday. I was slightly confused because I’d never actually heard of it and didn’t realise that last Monday was supposed to be the most depressing day of the year. I couldn’t quite believe what I was hearing, and to be honest with you, I found the conversation as well as the bland chicken salad on my plate quite depressing, so the topic soon changed!

But it did make me think and want to investigate why and how this day had ever come about. I mean, why on earth would anyone need to single out a day to be so bad and what could it achieve? Well, it was originally conceived in 2005 when a PR company coined the phrase and calculated that it was around the third Monday in January when we all start to feel low. What with Christmas being a distant memory, the bank statements starting to pop through the letterbox, the routine of work has begun again, and the weather being as bleak as it has been, it’s assumed our motivational levels will drop considerably.

I’m not so sure I agree with all that. I mean yes, I can no longer fit into my jeans after being so greedy over the festive season, my VAT and tax are due at the end of the month and I’m still not really motivated to go to the gym, but come one, things could be worse! I remember the day when Michael shrunk my favourite jumper in the wash and it came out looking only big enough for a Barbie to wear – now that was frustrating. Then there was the time I was walking through Kingston in heavy rain and a car drove into a puddle and drenched me – very annoying. But seriously, we need to stop being hard on ourselves. Who cares if we’ve broken a few resolutions and have to put on an extra jumper if it’s cold, because you know what, it’s not the end of the world. So, let’s keep going with 2018 and remain positive my friends!