(NECN: Katelyn Tivnan) - A heated indoor pool helps Deb Johnson and her grandkids forget about winter.
With more snow coming, they're not the only one wishing the cold weather away.
"I don't even want it to start but don't have a choice, you do what you do to get through," Worcester resident Joyce Labonte says.
It seems many people around Worcester are catching a case of the winter blues - and it's the real deal.
"If you live north of Washington DC, chances are you're going to experience the winter blues or some aspect of it," UMass Memorial Center Director of Health Psychology Dr. Amy Wachholtz says.
She says people become more weary of snow as it stretches further from the holidays.
"Just when they thought there was light at the end of the tunnel, they realize that light is actually a white out from the next blizzard," Dr. Wachholtz says.
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"They kicked in for me at the first snowfall, I don't like snow, I don't like cold .. Not sure why exactly I live in New England," Worcester resident Rachel Stokes says.
The blues appear in a variety of ways.
"Fatigue, sleep disruption, cravings for different foods, high fats, high carb," Dr. Wachholtz says.
Day dreaming of warmer times is another symptom, but Dr. Wachholtz says one of the best remedies is exercise.
This water aerobics class at Worcester Fitness is a popular place on cold days. For gym goers like Joyce Labonte, getting in shape for spring is almost as good as springtime itself.
"I'm a golfer and my first priority is to get ready for golf season, there nothing better than being strong," she says.
Others plan to keep dreaming until the temperatures rise.
"I pretend I'm moving to Hawaii, I look at apartments and I have a sun lamp so I sit under that while I plan," Stokes says.
