Finding More Joy In The Holiday Season

Kathleen Dwyer-Blair December 12, 2014

Photos of illuminated outside festive lamp with blue colored lights in backgound — Image credit: photo by Aaron Burden on Unsplash.

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Christmas is a time when you get homesick – even when you’re home.

Carol Nelson.

For some people the holidays are magical, joyful, and something to look forward to, however for others, the holidays may be filled with sadness, stress, and dread. However ...

... while there are many stressors on us during this season, we can find ways to bring joy back into our lives. Listed below are some of the most common concerns, and some tips for finding a way past them.

Does The Season No Longer Seem Magical?

We might be focusing on our happy memories from childhood, making today’s holidays no longer seem quite so magical. For many of us, it might seem like the holidays are only a source of stress – going from here to there, from a Christmas recital to a dinner to another party. We can’t seem to remember the last time we felt like the holidays were really “special”.

Tips That Can Help Bring Back The Magic And Enrich Your Life

It’s all about awakening that inner child. You can create new memories, even as an adult:

Realize that in the busy-ness of modern life, you may have lost something important: you sense of awe and wonder at simple things: a snow flake, eyes wide open of children getting more excited by the day, and so on.
If you don’t have children, recruit a niece, neighbor, or friend to make a craft with you for the holidays.
What do you most fondly remember? Was it ice-skating? Take a friend today! Or was it going to see the lights? All of these things are opportunities to see joy in your current lives. We can never return to the past, but this is a good chance to see our adult lives filled with simple joy, too.
Spend more time outdoors with family or friends.

For uncomplicated holiday blues, improvement may be found by finding ways to reduce the stresses associated with the holiday, either by limiting commitments and outside activities, or by making arrangements to share family responsibilities.

Melissa Conrad Stöppler, MD from MedicineNet.com.

For more ideas, check out our various articles about how handle stressful times better, and not let stress and strain hold you hostage.