What are Holiday Blues and How To Help Someone Beat Them

Holidays bring merriment to lives, but this saying isn’t true for everybody. For some people, holidays come associated with unrealistic expectations, financial pressure, commercialism, and so much more. These cause stress and anxiety in any individual. We’re more or less acquainted with the term “Holiday Blues.” It occurs more during Thanksgiving, Christmas, and New Year’s. 

After all, we all need a Santa. We have a kid inside every one of us. From now on, let’s try to be the Santa our loved ones need.

What are Holiday Blues?

Getting the holiday blues is a legit phenomenon. The stressful events revolving around the holiday festivals can give rise to depression in people. We’re all like ornaments on a Christmas tree. Some are more fragile than others. The ability to deal with a certain situation isn’t similar in different individuals. So, some people fall prey to the grips of holiday stress. 

It can be severe for people in recovery (especially from drugs and alcohol abuse), seniors, divorced people, and kids of single parents. If the family and surrounding people aren’t mindful of their whereabouts, the holiday blues can lead them to a serious mental breakdown. 

What Causes the Holiday Blues? 

Many factors can give you the blues. Some of the most common factors are-

  • Financial hardship

  • Commercialization

  • Unrealistic expectations of family members and relatives

  • Buying gifts for everyone 

  • Stressful family and relative gatherings 

  • Inability to be with loved ones

These things can make festivals feel unwanted to individuals. Also, people with SAD (Seasonal Affective Disorder) are much prone to getting the holiday blues. 

Symptoms 

The symptoms are pretty much the same for everyone. Here’s a list of things observed in a person with holiday blues.

  • Insomnia 

  • Fatigue

  • Headache

  • Anxiety

  • Mild to severe depression

  • Overeating

  • Irritability

  • Excessive drinking

  • Difficulty in concentrating

 

If the depression lingers on even when the holiday season is over, one should seek help. Feel free to reach out to Next Level Recovery Associates for any kind of help with depression and recovery.

 

How You Can Help Someone Fight the Holiday Anxieties and Stress

The above-mentioned signs can indicate if someone close to you, maybe a family member, is suffering from stress. It’s the duty of the surrounding people to help them out of it. A person going through anxiety and depression will give away the symptoms through their actions. The well-wishers can do the following to help individuals fight the blues.

  1. Involve Them 
    As a family member or a friend, or a relative, make sure to involve the concerned person in festivities. As the anxiety boils us, they tend to isolate them. Don’t let that happen. Take them to shop gifts, or ask them to volunteer in some other chores. 

  2. Make Realistic Plans for the Holidays
    Financial pressure and overcapitalization can lead to stress. Set budgets for the festivals and try to stick to the plans as much as possible. The concerned individual needs to stay calm. If possible, hold parties with people he/she’s comfortable around. Compromising a year’s festivities a bit won’t be a headache if it’s for your close ones to stay healthy. 

  3. Add Exercise Routines
    One should maintain a healthy exercise routine to avoid the holiday blues. Family and friends have to make sure they keep it up during the holidays as well. To do this, one can set routines with the affected person. This way, you’re getting the exercise done and also keeping the blues at bay. 

  4. Spend Time With Them
    During times of depression, individuals feel lonely and tired of life. Self-reflection hits the brain cells now and then, and they feel guilty about many things. To fight this, people around him need to spend more and more time with him. Talking to others calms those excited nerves. If you’re suspicious that someone in your family or friends has got the holiday blues, talk to them. Help them get their inner chaos out. 

  5. Get Help
    If things get out of hand, or you only want to stay prepared, contact the SAMHSA helpline. They provide support 24/7, 365 days. Also, encourage your dear ones to ask for help at any time. The holidays bring diverse emotions; it’s nothing new. It’s completely normal to feel the necessity for emotional or medical support. Encourage them to let you know first hand whenever necessary. 

Final Words

This message is for both an affected individual and the people around them. Getting the holiday blues is a common phenomenon mostly among grown-ups. Tend to your close ones who show symptoms and give them proper mental support. A constant state of stress can lead to long-term anxiety and give birth to panic attacks and depression. It’s high time we normalized seeking help for people and made holidays enjoyable for everyone. 

Samantha Penn