It's Jan. 31, finally. Why does the month feel so long?
Today is Friday. Cheers! But even better, it's Jan. 31. Finally.
For many individuals, January has been extremely dragging, dubbing it the longest month of the year.
Though it's technically similar to six other months (March, May, July, August, October, December) in terms of days, January... is... just... too... damn... long.
Even a 2016 The New Yorker cartoon has poked fun at—grieved over—the month taking much of the calendar year. In 2023, Filipino merchandise store Linya-Linya also jokingly asked whether there's Jan. 32 as the month feels like forever.
But why is that so?
According to Rainier Ladic, also known as The Juan Psychologist, there are post-festivity blues that come with January as it follows December, the most festive month due to Christmas Day and New Year's Eve.
"January feels dragging because it is the time of our lives where we try to recover financially, emotionally, and socially," Ladic said in an interview with PhilSTAR L!fe. "When we try to recover from something, we usually put more focus on time because we tend to be impatient on getting to the end of it."
Once the festivities stop, people return to their "monotonous day-to-day activities," according to Ladic, and it further contributes to the seeming slowing down of time.
"There’s nothing really much to look forward to as compared to December which has 'more fun' vibes to it," he added.
Lordy Angelo Santos, who also goes by Tito Mong Psychologist, told L!fe that January sees fewer activities compared to the latter months of the year.
"The more activity we engage in, on top of the expectations and preparations we make [as the year ends], the faster we often perceive time," Santos said.
Meeting deadlines, typically before schools or offices halt operations, often feels like a breeze because of the anticipation toward the holiday season, which gives a sense of collective excitement.
But once the fun ends after Christmas and New Year, people are expected to return to their respective everyday routines, giving the idea of things going by so slowly.
New beginnings
Ladic also noted that January is when people usually begin doing something, and that affects people's perception of time.
"The beginning, most of the time, is perceived as the most challenging," he said. "When something seems difficult, every second feels dragging."
For American psychologist Chloe Carmichael, this supposed new beginning also comes with pressure as it serves as a reflection of people's past achievements as they perceive them.
“They might feel a lot of pressure as they look back at what they did or did not accomplish last year," Carmichael told Yahoo! Life in 2024.
Happy hormones drop
The anxiety toward January can also be attributed to the drop of happy hormones, or dopamine, in the body, according to Carmichael.
She noted that people get a surge of dopamine as they give and receive gifts, or when they experience the "magic" of the holiday season.
"[I]t feels really good,” she said. “So [after the holidays], there can be a sense of depletion of those chemicals... It can almost feel like someone pulled the emotional rug out from underneath us, [and it's] a contrast coming off the high of the holidays.”
Carmichael also noted that January is the time when people may be confronting post-holiday debts.
“A lot of people may have overspent, so that can put a toll on our sense of well-being,” Carmichael said.
What to do
Santos advised everyone that acknowledging and understanding "this natural phenomenon" may help how one perceive time.
He said one may have an objective inventory of activities they wish to do and tasks they need to accomplish to "give a sense of normalcy without the presence of holidays or other celebrations."
"Engaging in different relaxation or grounding exercises may help as well," he added.
For Ladic, the phenomenon, other than giving a feeling of the month being long and dragging, doesn't necessarily have a detrimental impact on one's mental health.
"We know for sure that it will end," he said. "What people can do is to stay grounded by balancing responsibilities and leisure."
He asked everyone to set goals and create positive changes in life.
"The important thing is that we feel that we exist in the 'here-and-now' and not just fast-forward everything," Ladic said.
"January may feel the longest time of the year," he added, "but it can give us a reminder that beginning something may feel dragging but even so, you are moving one step at a time."
