I´ll add another thing: eat soup, gulash or something similar. If it is good and warm, that will heat you from the inside. I am a Swede, but I have lived in Austria for some eight years now, and it was there I got the idea of gulash and soups. It really makes a difference, at least for me. It keeps me warm and it lasts for a long time.

*I used to work in Finland--and to me, the best part of living in Helsinki was going to work in the dark and coming home in the dark during winter. I could see the stars most of the time, the snow was very bright and crisp, and there was no pollution. But I also lived in another very uninteresting town on the west coast of the country, and the snow there was very slushy and it smelled of factory fumes. So, I guess it all depends on what part of a country you live in--as long as you like "Nordic Weather"!*

As someone that has grown up in sweden in my humble opinion swedes themself generally struggle more with the dark then the cold. I would even go as far as saying that -15 in the midlands is preferable to +5 in a costal city with the horrible sea winds. As always tho good video, you are doing a great job trying to help people understand the culture but also helping them avoid the minefields of struggles that could potentially come when migrating to a new place!

Canada here. Can totally relate. Off to the gym for a sauna and a steam!!!!

I've lived through a Stockholm winter. I actually enjoyed the dark. Walking down the street then and looking up at the apartments with candles in almost every window was another type of "mysig." The toughest thing was how long it took for warmer weather to arrive, having to go through numerous "false springs."

Now you see why I love the winter, at least when it´s a proper winter as it´s been this season. Last season with a LOT of rain and ice wasn´t that much fun. Living in Hälsingland when we have this wunderful winters is just awsome! I´ll take the dark days and the cold without a problem, just to have this.

As a native Nord, I have lived outside of the Nordic countries (first in the US and now in Poland) for half of my life now. One of the things I miss the most are the cold dark winters. The dark in particular forces you to slow down. You enter hibernation mode. It's very nice. Very relaxing. Elsewhere in the world it feels like I need to perform constantly.

I've been watching you since your monthly checkup on Swedish language and I still love your videos! Thank you! You are genuinely inspiring ❤

Greetings from Finland! Very good tips! (And congratulations for your successful naturalization!)

I have lived in NY and VT most of my life and its also cold and damp during the winters. We tend to take your suggestions as givens but I particularly like the one about being social. This is often overlooked but its so very important. Also, getting adequate vitamin D is crucial for your health.

The winters have been crappy since I moved down to the south of Sweden (close to Stockholm). I love a good long winter. The snow makes it much brighter. One of my favourite things to do in the winter is taking a walk out in the snow with the full moon as the only light source. Or almost even better, watching the northen lights! Winter is my favourite part of the year. I don't really like warm weather, I can cope much better with cold. And I love things like cross country skiing and watching wintersports like bandy, biathlon and curling.

4:36 here in Skåne (most southest part of Sweden) We get alot of slask. We get snow and then the next day it is 1°. But nowdays We have acctually had snow for 2 weeks or something.

Grew up in Alaska, further north than Stockholm and my #1 tip for surviving the winter is have two or three winter activities that make you excited for winter. Pond hockey, skiing/snowboarding and ice fishing were may top 3.

I would add that it is really nice for ones mood to go outside and do something in the weekends. Go for a long walk in the forest or similar to soak up as much light as possible and get some excercise. It really makes a huge difference.

When it's cold, I start with underwear, if it's not enough, I put on layer 2 microfleece and if you really want to make sure you don't freeze, wear a wool sweater or underwear because wool keeps you dry 🥶😅👍

Your tip about getting outside the city and experiencing the benefits is close to what I always suggest to foreigners when they first come here. Start a winter activity. Find something you find enjoyable that's specifically linked to winter and you can't really do any other season. Don't just endure the winter, make have something you look forward to, as many have with picking mushrooms and fruit in autumn. Learn to skate, ski or whatever in winter

All good and sound advice.

Yes, 100% on these, especially making things cozy and doing outdoor winter activities. Thank you for your videos Stefan! You're an inspiration.

Another good one mr Thyrone.

You are awesome! Thanks

Bra tips!! Vi hade en egen bastu i vår källare i huset jag växte upp i! Och badkar! Har varken eller nu och saknar verkligen badkaret!!! Ett annat bra tips är att dricka mycket varmt te och ha raggsockor på fötterna. 😊

a typical winter in the north is just cold.snow and cold again thre darkness is a blessing in sort cuz ure body goes into a restingmode.and as he says theres no bad weather just bad clothes eat nutrious food if u can keep the warmth and just take the day as it comes.

If you have problems with the winter darkness, you should get a daylight lamp. It is a special kind of lamp that tries to emulate the sunshine as closely as possible and can help those who are suffering.

0:14 is extremely relatable, haha.

I agree with everything, except the social life during winter. I have a daughter since almost five years and every september-march we have been sick each and every month. The energy to socialize is not there at all. On top of that I like to play video games and watch movies. So the winter half year I enjoy my hobbies during sickness (when I have energy), and the small windows feeling well in between. March-august I am more healthy, have a lot more energy, sunbathe outside, fix the house and garden, speak with neighbours, say yes to gatherings etc. I am born -91 so the only sad thing I can feel, is that my friends from the countryside growing up, also living in Stockholm, took distance to me when I met an older partner (she has two kids from before) and we got a daughter together. I guess they could not handle it, they were not ready for living as a family... But yeah, that hurt. I have told them this but they just say I've also been taking my time with my relationship, but my partner was never accepted. Also when a group of 5-10 persons with their respective partners shut out 1 person, it is always the 1 persons fault... Right!?

I was born here in December 1962 and you are spot on!

I always keep in mind that ”yes this winter is beutifull Even if i can feel a little blue i know that summer Will come once more”

I find it really interesting to see a foreigners (even if that is debatable since you are naturalized) view of this country. As with most things in life there are good times and bad times. If you watch a Jonna Jinton video (which is very beautiful) it might lead you to believe this is Swedish winter all the time. For me living in norrland I kind of wiew it differently. Getting up to work in the dark, start with shoveling snow in full snowstorm to get my car out. Then come home from work and find the parking area looking undone so I have to shovel for at least another hour to get the car in. Oh well, enough complaining. Sauna is nice and a very Finnish tradition we adopted here. Bastu is a short form of badstuga wich means for those not speaking swedish a house to get clean. But Stefan, bastu is traditionally combined with a bath in icy waters. I would not try it for the world.

That's correct, I excercise at least once a day, and in the winter I most days go for a run during the hours of light. 😊 There's no problem running even when it's down around minus 15-20 degrees celsius.

Trust me growing up in Norrköping and moving to Sundsvall was terrible. -29 when I had never felt colder than -15😢 Ive always thought the winter is a pain, never get used to it even if I always lived here

I think your tips are very good :) one thing I would add is that sometimes when the snow is melting you get places where it is ice with a layer of water on top, this stuff is extremely slippery so be really careful if you try to walk on it - maybe better to take a longer route and avoid it, also do not assume that all paths/roads will be salted/gritted even if you live in a town/city - some may look clear but it is just that the ice is hard to see. My partner's sister works at the hospital and they get lots of people into A&E from slipping and falling on ice :/

very nice video

I live in Dalarna too. I have Very recently come to understand how to deal with the darkness. My sleep has been wrecked since November as if I have a new born baby, but I don’t! It’s the dark. However. I have gotten better sleep for a few days now and I have a recipe for success. You have to eat vitamin D every day. Vit D, K2, a B- vitamin complex and a multivitamin and multi mineral supplement. Every day. I also had to cut down caffeine to zero. I can’t even drink green tea, not even one cup. No caffeine or theine. And excercise thoroughly multiple times per week. And when the sun is still up, go out for awhile, and sit close to a window while indoors. All this is very important.

Go downhill skiing!! Fun, healthy exercise, gets you outside and lots of excitement. Also opportunities to meet new friends.

Extra tip... put on gloves BEFORE you go out. They are meant to keep the warmth in, so it is less effective when your hands are already cold.

I spent a year between high school and college as an exchange student at a gymnasium (high school) in Lund, Sweden many years ago. The teachers made everyone go outside between every class to make sure we saw daylight! And back then we had to go to school 5 1/2 days a week (M-F plus Saturday mornings); don't know if that is still the case.

På mitt 50-tal var vintrarna strängare och med tåg som alltid följde tidtabellen med viss fördröjning ibland. Annars var alltid städernas alla vägar plogade och sandade. Till och med cykelbanorna var farbara. Numera funkar 🇸🇪 som Calcutta.

Leave the country for some skiing in the Alps is my tip

First of all: Welcome, at last you have become a Swedish citizen! The reason why is obvious: You like to be here. Sweden is not a bad place (says I, born Swedish). And to Americans: We are rather more north than you may think. Stockholm (in southern Sweden) is some 60 degrees north, as is the southern part of Alaska, whereas New York is at 45 degrees north as is Rome, Italy, in southern Europe. Mer personligt: Jag har följt dig på KZfaq i många år och har sett dig blivit allt mer svensk hela tiden, liksom jag har sett din svenska förbättras. Din accent lär du nog inte bli av med i första taget, but why even try? Olika accenter är kryddor som gör smakpaletten rikare. Du talar bra svenska, and that is, essentially enough, men jag är övertygad om att du -temps-en-temps kommer ätt kunna lära dig de små detaljerna som gör din svenska perfekt. Om inte: Betänk att vår drottning, Silvia, fortfarande inte talar perfekt svenska (hennes tyska ursprung avslöjar henne).But she is allright, as you will be..She has a king, not a teacher. Hopefully you will eventually have a teacher cum queen.. Hans Strömberg, Stockholm, Sweden

I'm mostly just curious about how windy it is there during the winter, in the midwest we're used to -10°F but the wind chill has it feeling closer to -30°F. Since there's so few trees here it can feel like a wind valley sometimes. I'd presume since there's so many trees in Sweden this isn't such a problem but I've never been able to confirm it. Also, some not so obvious advice to handle the cold: wear your coat for a few minutes prior to going outside, if you can. To save up some heat into the coat. Also how recently you've eaten has an effect on how well you'll handle the cold.

Slask is like 72% of the reasons I dont like living in bigger cities. I LOVE the winter, I LOVE the cold, Ice, snow, Hockey and Snowboarding. Slask is my mortal enemy. Slask is my *nemesis.*

I have seen minus 27 celcius degree in NYC, that was pretty cold too

Nice ♡

I have visited Yakutia, the temperature there is -50 usually and the lowest is -70. So Sweden seems pretty normal to me.

The Norwegian way of Vitamin D supplement is Tran😀 I take the coward one with sitron😄

One thing that almost every Swede does wrong is to turn off all electric and artificial lights in their homes and instead use candles and tea candles. We need as much light as we possibly can so we should turn up all our lamps and lights. Candles are pretty cozy though. I was born here and I don’t have a problem with the cold (even though I don’t like it). It’s always the darkness that gets me and I live in Stockholm which is pretty far south.

Always, ALWAYS fika!

The answer is snow! If you have problems with the winter in Sweden go where the snow is. The snow gives you everything. Beautiful scenery, skiing, sledging, ice fishing. The problem is the darkness. I haven't figured out that problem yet. I stay inside and watch movies.

The cold is nothing... the darkness,that is the one that kills. Bastu, that's the one that saves.

Mora,,,,,dra till tomteland ;-)

always prepare to live simple.theres not always u get ure sauna or ure internet or heat.. so just if u must live as we did before.eat what u have or can get

Or you stay indoors 24/7 365, you never even notice what season it 🤣🤣. My no1 tip is also to seize the light at your disposal, natural or unnatural. Make the best of things, you can have alot of fun in the dark too.

Me rn watching this video in Guatemala with a 28°C temperature. I want to go to Sweden lol

The cold weather in greater Stockholm is not the same as cold weather in Kiruna in northern Sweden.

Hi i Might be wrong, but i guess its the same in states like Wyoming,Montana,Dakotas,Minnesota…Wisconsin…Vermont ?

Haha SO CLASSIC not seeing the sun for 4-6 Month during the winter.... 😅😢

i would recommend you buy a balaclava it has helped me a lot, we had -37 2 weeks ago and thx to my balaclava i didn't freeze (i lost feeling in my legs but i didn't freeze)

👍🥰‍‍👍‍‍

Try working nights in Sweden...haha, I don't see sunlight for weeks. It's OK. We drink milk, eat cheese etc so vitamin D is no problemo

bastu är bäst

The old myth that you loose soooo much heat throught your head. 🙂 Try beeing outside wearing just something on your head and the rest of your body naked, than comparing the opposite. 🙂 Nice video as always. 👍👍

Survive? Winter is when we thrive.

Du hade kunnat åka till Canada och få samma känsla. Sverige och Canada ligger på ungefär samma breddgrad.

Do you miss Portland? It certainly isn’t what it used to be :( very sad

What is that place

There was a study that said 90% of your body heat leave through the head, this is a myth. I personally believed this for a long time but it's not true. Still, covering your head and hands is important. If you're unused to the cold getting a scarf, balaclava or something to cover your face might be a good idea since extremities like the nose, fingers and toes are the first to get frost bite. It might not look pretty and if you have glasses it's a pain in the socks but better than the alternative.

Oh, and one more thing - get clothing made out of wool. That keeps you warm even if you get wet. A thick coat from wool (preferrably kneelong and with a hood aka dufflecoat) and wool socks do make a difference. Of course it is important to protect your head, but warm feet comes second. Sadly, dufflecoats are expensive, but they DO work great.

När ska du göra ett program på svenska ? Du är ju svensk nu😉

Cod liver is far superior to d3 supplements, it tastes like fish and it's one of those things you learn to love❤ -honey, is that me or you?😂 -it's you i bought the smoked can

Getting married certainly helps

Or you build your own wood burned sauna like me, but i live on the countryside of course

Can you make an OF please 😋

I mean, Stockholm doesn't really get cold or real snow . It's just boring weather. At least up north you get real snow. The snow makes everything feel a bit brighter. Stockholm is a depressing place in winter

The best advice is to wear a hat. That's the very basic and first thing. Edit: and yeah, that was your first thing. You really know how to prioritize! 👍👍👍

How has Global Warming affected Sweden in the summer and the rest of the year? Dangerously high temperatures reported in the USA and Europe have been life threatening!

*promosm*

Wtf heter långkalsonger long johns på engelska haha sjukaste jag har hört 😂

Swedish Kiruna winter has nothing on the Alaskan winter.

My only tip is to leave the country 😜

Wrong! You are not loosing more heat from your head than any other body part!

😂Being Indian and living in India whole life "paying" sauna and get sweat is totally new

Real Swedes loves winter and not summer. And darkness is great.

I don't think a chain smoker survives heart disease or cancer, even if he has many friends. Many people in Sweden are very lonely and despite that, we live a very long time. Just scaremongering.