Summary

The holiday season can elicit a stress response in people. We do not have much data on how the holidays affect mental health symptoms and utilization of mental health services during the holidays. We can be proactive in dealing with the holidays. We can make choices to maintain our wellbeing. Above all, remember the importance of self-care and the inspiration of music during December 2024 and in 2025.

December Holiday Stress and Wellbeing

During the month of December, many cultures and religious traditions celebrate holidays which revolve around social gatherings and family get togethers. The holiday season can elicit a sense of stress in people. Holiday stress can affect our wellbeing.

Let’s explore further.

Statistics, Please

Data, evidence, and facts drive me. But the research seems sparse related to holidays during the month of December and stress.

In 2023, the American Psychological Association conducted a poll of 2061 Americans 18 years old or older. The information gathered is interesting related to the number of people who considered that the holiday season to elicit a stressful response in them. The reasons varied, including some people who expressed experiencing stress because they do not celebrate Christian holidays.

Thus, I mention the existence of holidays other than Christian holidays during the month of December. Why? Because these holidays can also elicit stress for people.

But, we really have little data.

A research article published in 2023 (Schneider et al) reviewed the international literature and identified 25 studies related to Christmas and Easter holidays with respect to use of emergency department services and hospitalizations. The data did not substantiate an increase in utilization of services and, in fact, identified that hospitalizations were lower on Christmas and other holidays.

In a 2011 review article, Sansone and Sansone arrived at similar conclusions to Schneider et all, with the caveat that post the Christmas holiday increased rates of service utilization was observed.

Anecdotally, I have noticed that clients, colleagues, and friends, experience more mental health symptoms during the holidays. Anecdotally, I have known inpatient services to plan discharges prior to holidays, for a number of reasons. Anecdotal information in concert with the data from the American Psychological Association survey substantiate the need to discuss being proactive about maintaining mental wellbeing during the holiday season.

Dealing with Holiday Stress

How do you usually deal with stressors and stressful situations?

Might I remind you of the strategies discussed by Andrew Cooper-Sansone in his podcast Sense of Mind, The Neuroscience of Stress + 5 Strategies to Manage It, which aired on November 29, 2024. Clearly, I think that this one is worth watching because I cited it during last week’s post as well!

And, do not forget the impact that lack of sleep and impaired self-care can have on motivation, leading to mental fatigue.

The Neuroscience of Exhaustion: How to Stay Motivated

Consider your lifestyle choices during the holiday season. We have choices in life, including how we navigate the holidays in our respective cultures. Do you choose wellbeing over commercialization, consumerism, frantic dashes to join social gatherings, excessive expenditures on items that no one wants or uses or needs, frenzied attempts to please everyone, or indulgence in substances and foods and behaviours that are unhealthy?

Fueling a stressful holiday season can erode your sense of wellbeing and impact the people around you, including the entire community. Detaching from the frenzy while still engaging amicably will contribute to your wellbeing and, by extension, the wellbeing of everyone else.

Take a look at an option which limits the frenzy and consumerism and excess, an option boldly elaborated by Ryan Mitchell at The Tiny Life. Ryan has suggestions that can help you reassess your choices for gifts during the Christmas holiday season or for any occasion. His minimalist discussions could transform your life.

Five Gift Rule: Something You Want, Need, Wear, Read

Take-aways: Wellbeing and the Holidays

How you choose to live during the holidays is just that: a choice. Choose wisely, for your benefit and for the benefit of your community.

Engage in strategies to maintain wellbeing:

Of course, do not forget the music. Music fuels the spirit.

I leave you to your imagination to select the music which inspires you to be the best person you can possibly be during December 2024 and in 2025. We need you to inspire the world.

Be happy. Be grateful. Be generous. Be safe.

If you feel like hurting yourself or someone else, please call 9-1-1 or 9-8-8 or go to your nearest emergency room.

Selected References:

American Psychological Association Press Release. (November 30, 2023). Even a joyous holiday season can cause stress for most Americans. American Psychological Association. Accessed online on December 8, 2024, at https://www.apa.org/news/press/releases/2023/11/holiday-season-stress

Cooper-Sansone, A. (June 17, 2024). The Neuroscience of Exhaustion: How to Stay Motivated. Sense of Mind. Accessed online on December 8, 2024, at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GT8qV326V-8

Cooper-Sansone, A. (November 29, 2024). The Neuroscience of Stress + 5 Strategies to Manage It. Sense of Mind. Accessed online on December 8, 2024, at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qfvlEtO0XxU

Mitchell, R. (October 25, 2022). Five Gift Rule Christmas. The Tiny Life. Accessed online on December 8, 2024, at https://thetinylife.com/want-need-wear-read-ideas/

Sansone, R.A., Sansone, L.A. (2011). The Christmas Effect on Psychopathology. InnovClinNeurosc, 8(12): 10-13. Accessed online on December 8, 2024, at https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC3257984/

Schneider, E., Liwinski, T., Imfeld, L., Lang, U.E., Brϋhl, A.B. (2023). Who is afraid of Christmas? The effect of Christmas and Easter holidays on psychiatric hospitalizations and emergencies – Systematic review and single center experience from 2012 to 2021. FrontPsychiatry, 13:1049935. Accessed online on December 8, 2024, at https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC9874097/

Disclaimer: This post is not meant to substitute for a consultation with your mental health professional team.