Why Do We Feel Melancholy When Summer Ends?
Toward the end of summer, many of us start to feel that something is coming to an end. Vacation seems to be fading into the distance, even if we never actually went anywhere. The daily grind sets in, students return to their desks, and work resumes its normal rhythm. At the same time, September appears as a dividing line between summer and a new beginning.
Speaking to “Alpha on Sunday,” Counseling Psychologist Maria Gliaou explained that this feeling isn’t necessarily a sign that something is wrong with us. It is often a normal emotional reaction to a transition. She added that at the core of “end-of-summer melancholy” lies not only the change of season. It also stems from the feeling that a period filled with expectations, possibilities, and promises is coming to a close—whether we ultimately experienced them or not.
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Summer and Carefree Days
For many people, summer has taken on a special symbolism. Ms. Gliaou notes that from childhood onward, we’ve associated it with the end of school, play, the absence of a strict schedule, longer days, and a temporary respite from daily obligations. She explains that as adults, this association remains. “Summer becomes almost a socially accepted ‘permission’ to relax, be more spontaneous, travel, and set aside our usual roles for a while.”
A recent 2026 study, which utilized data from the European Social Survey across 16 European countries, shows that the summer school break can affect daily life differently depending on family circumstances.
The Perfect Summer and Social Media
How does social media influence expectations for a “perfect” summer? According to Ms. Gliaou, the image of the “perfect” summer portrayed on social media can have a negative impact on our mental well-being. Enchanting landscapes, luxurious hotels, couples in love, groups of friends, constant outings, and smiles easily create the impression that everyone else is having the summer we aren’t.
He explains that the psychological difficulty does not necessarily lie in the images themselves, but in the comparisons they may prompt. “When we compare our own daily lives to a curated and idealized version of someone else’s life, we forget that we’re seeing only a small, edited slice of reality.”
As she notes, the more we believe that summer “must” be the most beautiful season of the year, the greater the disappointment when reality fails to live up to our expectations. In fact, we may even feel that we have failed to enjoy ourselves. “The return, then, doesn’t begin only when we go back to work. It often begins much earlier, in our minds.”
“For many people, September feels like a second New Year.” A new schedule, a new school year, new goals, a return to work, and more responsibilities. Ms. Gliaou pointed out that, for children and adolescents, this connection is even stronger since, for twelve or more years, life is organized around a recurring cycle.The school year ends, summer follows, and then a new grade begins, with new teachers, a new curriculum, and new material. This recurring experience can leave a powerful symbolic imprint that we continue to carry with us into adulthood. That’s why, as he notes, September can feel like both an ending and a beginning. On the one hand, there is a sense of “mourning” for something that has ended. On the other hand, there is the feeling that we need to get organized and start off with a bang.
September and Anticipatory Anxiety
We don’t need for our obligations to have started yet to begin feeling anxious; it’s enough just to know they’re coming. The counseling psychologist explains that the mind begins to prepare for everything we think we’ll have to handle. Often, then, the discomfort of September stems not only from actual pressure but also from anticipated pressure.
Melancholy and Depression
What are the differences between melancholy and depression? Ms. Gliaou clarifies that the melancholy of late summer is not the same thing as depression and does not mean that anyone who feels “down” in September is suffering from seasonal affective disorder. She emphasizes that this distinction is important. “Feeling sadness, nostalgia, or anxiety because a period we love is coming to an end is part of the human experience. On the other hand, when low mood is intense, persistent, significantly affects functioning, sleep, appetite, relationships, or daily life, and recurs in a specific seasonal pattern, then an evaluation by a mental health professional is necessary.”
A Short Summer, an Endless Winter
Why do we feel that summer goes by so quickly, while winter seems endless? Ms. Gliaou explains that time is not experienced solely based on the clock. It is experienced through emotion, anticipation, attention, and the meaning we attach to a particular season. Summer is time-bound; we wait for it for months and know that it will end. She noted that winter can seem, mentally, like one long, unbroken cycle of obligations.
The most helpful thing we can do at the end of summer, according to Ms. Gliaou, is to stop treating it as a time for reflection. “We don’t need to decide whether we had a good enough time or whether it was a missed opportunity. We don’t need to compare our vacations with those of others. And above all, we don’t need to turn September 1 into a date on which we suddenly have to become the best version of ourselves.”
