3 Tips for Truckers Who Want to Beat the Winter Blues

There are a few worrying terms associated with trucking… for example, what is a semi headache rack? Cab fever? Sounds like trucking is pretty hard on the head, doesn’t it? Well, not exactly. Very rarely do truckers find themselves delirious in bed, tended to by the local country doctor. As a truck driver, your brain is much more likely to get affected, not by physical illness, but by mental fatigue.

Mental health is having a big moment in the media and in our society in general at the moment as we collectively realize how it affects every aspect of our lives. And unlike previous generations, who didn’t have words for these issues or felt they had to suffer in silence, folks nowadays are coming forward and sharing their struggles and strategies. As a trucker, the winter blues, often also referred to as SAD (seasonal affective disorder) can hit you especially hard as you find yourself driving long hours with less sunlight and less time spent outside due to cold weather. But don’t worry! There is hope!

Tip 1: Go out into nature

We’ve all heard of cabin fever. Well the trucker version is cab fever, where you feel trapped and restless in the small cab of your truck. A good way to counteract this is to periodically step out and take short or long walks in the sunshine. Make sure to bring appropriate clothing so your walks don’t make you cold, but rather invigorate you. Another way that you can keep mother nature on your side to beat the winter blues is by making sure to not only drive at night. Ask to be scheduled for daytime shifts and try to catch some ZZZs once it gets dark. This way you will feel less enveloped by the night.

Tip 2: Give your brain less to worry about

If the long winter months seem to make you a bit sluggish, don’t worry. You’re not alone. Remember that a great percentage of animals literally sleep all winter, and so your instincts to curl up into a little ball are not completely amiss. This is the least go-get-er season of the year, and one where people are prone to worry rather than act. Try to make yourself less susceptible to this kind of rumination as you drive by making sure that your ducks are all in order. Plan your routes effectively, pack everything you need, and have adequate tools and protection, such as a semi headache rack, to make sure you don’t find yourself stressing out about a heavy load on a slippery road.

Tip 3: Bring the sun to your cab

And finally, while the semi truck headache rack will be covering the back of your head, we’ve got something else for the front of it: a happy lamp. These lamps emit the same UV range as natural, summertime sunlight, and have been proven to improve mood and even sleep patterns. For a very low cost you can make sure to get your proper amount of light intake on even the dreariest or snowiest of days. Do you have to drive at night and stay awake? This light will make your body think it is daytime, thus doing your circadian rhythm a favour!

In conclusion, nobody is crazy about winter. It’s hard to shovel, hard to stay warm, and hard to not dream about Hawaiian vacations and margaritas. But if you implement the above tips, one day at a time, you’ll find the days feel a little bit less long, and you’ll get incrementally closer to those windows-down, sunny days being a reality once more!

Trebor Manufacturing is proud to be serving dealers, retailers, manufacturers and distributors in the trucking business, including truck parts dealers, across North America. Please feel free to call us, contact us or request a quote in regards to any of our semi-truck accessories including aluminum tool boxes, semi headache racks, custom semi-truck accessories and other products such as dump bodies and flatbeds.

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