Beating the winter blues without leaving Metro Detroit

Now that the days are shorter and the weather is cooler, beating the winter blues can be tough.

Devin Harvey warms up outside by spending time with people he loves on the slopes at Pine Knob in Clarkston. 

"I have not snowboard it in years and here I am with my family. They're snowboarding for the first time and now I'm out again," he said.

Colten Chrisman manning the hot chocolate and registers.

"It's definitely a place to have fun and enjoy your winter day," he said.

He'll tell you smiles are as abundant as snow here. Beating the winter blues means joining it, instead of running away from it.  

"Just being active gets the endorphins going, gets your blood pumping, and makes you warmer. You're not thinking about the cold. You're just thinking about being out there and having fun.  I certainly think I have beaten the winter blues," said Vroman Matthew.

"It is a mindset. You have to make seasonal adjustments. Just like you make situation adjustments, you decide it's not the same season it's not gonna be the same situation," Ricki Friedman said.

Friedman, a life strategist and motivational speaker, says a lot of how you handle winter and the blues is in your head.  Get out of your head by trying yoga, art, anything to switch up the daily routine.  

"There are certain things you normally wouldn't do in the summer that you can do in the winter like maybe you start a book, maybe there's activities that you wouldn't normally do. It's opportunities to try stuff outside of your comfort zone so it is just a mindset," he said.

Today's opening of TopGolf in Auburn Hills is one way to slice through the blues.

"Doing a little day drinking, and playing golf with my friends not bad at all. Who needs Florida? That's right, I got Florida right here," Aaron Moblie said.

If after a few days of trying to beat the winter blues you still feel down, you should contact someone for help - it could be a sign of depression.