Hello readers,
With Christmas quickly approaching everyone has different feelings and approaches to dealing with the holiday.
The overall outlook to Christmas is everyone must be festive, happy, buying lots of presents for your loved ones and having Christmas cheer. However is this realistic?
Christmas to me is feeling festive while around Christmas decorations whether that is inside a home or outside in a town. However you aren’t expected to make your whole December life constantly around Christmas like the movies. Life still carries on with your work and personal troubles. Christmas I would say is a good distraction but also a lot of pressure.
Christmas Day itself should be about being around those you care for whether that’s family or friends or even both. Don’t get me wrong presents are nice but they shouldn’t be expected. What I personally look forward to regarding Christmas itself is being with my family. I find it’s the one day a year where your family is mostly all together, you can drink early and not be judged (even if you do you can just say “it’s Christmas”). You can play games with your family and just truly be happy. I would take that over gifts. But isn’t it also sad that it takes a global holiday for everyone to be brought together and cheerful.
Although I am lucky to still have my family and a job to afford a happy Christmas you still have to think about those who don’t. People who are feeling the pressures of Christmas to buy their loved ones presents when they don’t have much money for themselves let alone others but feel guilty not buying them something. The gift of simply being alive and spending the day together should be enough if it’s enough for you without feeling you need to break the bank.
Also Christmas is hard for those who may have lost someone this year or previous years and still not recovered. This day and other social holidays may be a particular hard day. Especially if someone doesn’t have anyone or anything and this day is just a reminder they are alone.
This is why as we are approaching Christmas show kindness to everyone as we don’t know what people are going through or what this day represents for them. Be respectful. Be thankful for everything you have and if someone does decide to give you a gift, appreciate what it means for someone being able to do that.
If you don’t have a lot of money don’t feel pressured by what society tells you that you must do.
Just think you are alive and breathing. Some people are taking their last breath while your still thriving though it may not feel like it.
If your feeling down please reach out to someone. People care and you are not being a burden.
Try to enjoy it the way you do not by how others do. Everyone has their own ways to do things and traditions.
Thank you for reading and take deep breaths.
Shay x
Should you need to speak to anyone regarding your mental health, please use the below details supplied from the UK NHS website.
- Call 116 123 to talk to Samaritans, or email: jo@samaritans.org for a reply within 24 hours
- Text “SHOUT” to 85258 to contact the Shout Crisis Text Line, or text “YM” if you’re under 19
If you’re under 19, you can also call 0800 1111 to talk to Childline. The number will not appear on your phone bill.
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