Healthline: How to Prep Yourself for the Post-Holiday Blues

Some call the holidays the season of cheer. Others call it the season of jeer. Many fall somewhere in between. Much to-do is made about the holidays themselves. There’s the cliche that it’s a happy, cozy time full of delightful family gatherings and traditions. However, not everyone experiences this type of holiday. Grief, loss, and the stress of the hustle-and-bustle can take their toll on mental health. Then there’s what happens when the silver and gold decorations get boxed up, and the calendar flips to January 2. You may feel a little blue after New Years regardless of your feelings during the holidays themselves

There aren’t many studies about holiday emotions, but an older 2006 survey by the American Psychological Association (APA) suggested that 78 percent of people often felt happiness while 68 percent often or sometimes felt fatigued. Like holiday emotions, the idea of post-holiday blues hasn’t been studied much, though some research and experts say it’s fairly common. “Post-holiday blues is the sadness you feel after the holiday season is over,” says Angela Ficken, LICSW, a Boston-based psychotherapist.

It’s a let-down that happens after a busy season of seeing family and friends. It’s similar to what happens after highly anticipated events like vacations and weddings. Rae Mazzei, Psy.D., B.C.B., an Arizona-based health psychologist, shares that common symptoms of post-holiday blues may include:

• regret about things you did or didn’t say or do

• emptiness because of a pared-down schedule with fewer or no celebrations

• loneliness, with fewer people to see and events to attend

• sadness that the holidays ended or that they weren’t what you thought they’d be

• trouble sleeping because of stress or difficult emotions

Some Insights From This Article

• What are the post-holiday blues? It’s the feeling of loneliness, regret and sadness that may come on Jan 2nd or any other day after the end of the year festivities come to a close and there isn’t much to do or go out anymore.

• The holidays is often a time of gathering for many people including friends, family and co-workers. With that comes increased social interaction which is often accompanied by what people have called for centuries the “Christmas cheer”.

• However the new year starts, many people find themselves in the same routine over and over again with school starting again, work going back to normal and gatherings less frequent. This return to normalcy can cause what this article calls “post-holiday blues”.

• There are many methods to counteract this however and the article discusses it further!

How do you transition from the holiday season to back to normal after the new year?

Full article is here!

#Holidays #Emotions #NewYears