Why am I so down lately?

If you’re in the US, then the lack of sunlight helps push you down. Stopping exercising is also not good. People who are depressed should exercise as much as possible. Fatigue is a problem as well. Depressed people should get a good and regular amount of sleep. To bed at the same time every night. 8 hours. More if possible. And yes, socializing is important. Feeling like you are part of a group that cares for you. You need strong connections.

Try to work back into the things you’ve given up. Up the exercise. More rest. More time spent with friends. Also work on the stress. See a doctor. Maybe an antidepressant would help. It can relieve you of worry and make your work much easier. If you can spend more time in the sun, that will really help (I guess I’m assuming you have a desk job).

You have to break this cycle, or it will continue to take you down. Tell a friend you need help doing this, and maybe have them exercise with you or do anything outdoors with you. Maybe a regular walk on weekends. If things keep on getting worse, then maybe a therapist would be indicated.

Take care of yourself. It’ll make your life easier.

Congratulations! You have recognized a problem and started to think about solutions. As @wundayatta said, you must break the cycle so the spiral stops. Do you have anyone to talk to? That will help.
The winter solstice just passed. It is dark and cold outside at 5:00 PM. No wonder you don’t want to do anything after work. You’re normal! Know that the days will get brighter from here.

You chose your screen name for a reason. I’m guessing yours is thoughtful, caring, and gentle. Now it is time for it to take care of you.
(Onigiri – the original comfort food.)

It sounds like you might be clinically depressed. Take this self-evaluation and see what it indicates.

If you are depressed, consider seeing an MD about getting anti-depressant medication.

I am particularly worried about you cutting off your friends. That’s not healthy.

Holiday blues can have a lot to do with it as well. Its not uncommon for the holidays to make people feel left out in the cold when others seem so chipper. Once winter is over and the holidays are behind you, you may feel better. For now get plenty of rest, and pamper yourself a little. Treat yourself to a massage, go site seeing, go see a funny movie. Break up your routine as much as possible. Go dancing in the middle of the week, even if it means you’ll be dragging butt tomorrow at work.
Blow some steam. You are probably in a rut. Also mind your diet. You will need more vitamin d during the winter.
You may think you have no time to work out but usually people can spare at least 30 minutes a day. You may have to force yourself at first but after a while you will get the energy and won’t need to push yourself.
Volunteer, or set a goal and make it stick. Sign up for an online class to get you feeling at ease about returning to school.

Concentrate on looking ahead to school, and learn as much as you can on your own. Draw what you see around you. Save as much money as you can, with an eye to the future. Being able to delay gratification is a great predictor of success. Have you been accepted in an art program? Do you have a portfolio together? Have you thought about doing something like creating an artist’s trading card every day, photographing it, and posting the image to a tumblr site as a way to mark the time?

Also, if you know you’re going to get time off, instead of squandering it in town, go to a city where there’s art museums and galleries and look around. Get a camera and photograph ordinary things around you. So much of art is seeing the extraordinary in the ordinary.

Thanks to all of you, so much. I like that you all had different but great insights. I will take all of these to heart.