Plan on Preventing the Blues This Holiday

You may feel like you’re the only one coping with the stress of the holidays. However, all those family and friends you see more often around this time of year – they too, are most likely, feeling the same blues you are. How do you stay afloat amidst the collective chaos? The first step is to consider having a plan so you can prevent the stressful, anxiety-filled, depressing emotions that often accompany the holidays. Prevention is key to avoiding the blues. Counseling can pave the way for a smoother experience. Prepare for the holiday blues in order to prevent them.

Feeling Guilty Because You Are Not In The Spirit?

It’s hard to pretend you’re enjoying the holidays when you’ve recently lost a loved one. Maybe you yearn for the presence of someone who can’t be with you at this special time of year. Life is constantly changing and we might find ourselves nostalgic for holidays past or imagining a “perfect” holiday that seems out of reach. Then again, you may be tormented by past traumatic holiday memories. Perhaps certain expectations of self and/or others make the holidays more painful and less joyful. Whatever the obstacles may be to enjoying the moments that present themselves, seeking counseling to prepare for the holidays can help one acknowledge the what and why of these seasonal holiday blues with their associated feelings of isolation. Holiday blues counseling may offer grief support while also helping to devise a plan to meet the unique challenges of this time, face disappointments, and be open to new ways of celebrating. One may need help adjusting to changes in income, energy, expectations or even assessing one’s ability and desire in regards to shopping, baking, partying, or whatever activities you require of yourself during the holidays.

Want To Give Yourself A Present?

Counseling around and before the holidays could be the greatest gift you can give yourself. You may need help to allow yourself a break, some gentle quiet time to re-charge and stay in touch with what you must do to remain peaceful, calm, and stress free. Should you find yourself unable to sleep, overindulging in food and drink, complaining, endlessly worrying, feeling sad, lonely, despairing, irritable, joyless, overwhelmed, angry and miserable – consider professional counseling. You can prevent holiday madness meltdowns with the sane and calm guidance of a therapist. Therapy can provide the support and comfort you seek. In addition, therapy encourages you to take care of YOU first, to stay in touch with your real desires, needs, routines and whatever else is truly important for you to pay attention to during the holidays. Your therapist may help you to see different alternatives and options that may not have occurred to you, thus, paving the way for a positive and perhaps even surprisingly delightful ne w experience of the holidays. In the season of unreasonable expectations and demands and crazy pressures, make this holiday different by giving yourself the gift of sanity. Your happiness and peace are the only gifts worth having!!!!