In a normal year the happiest of us might suffer from a bit of the holiday blues, so one can imagine without too much effort that in a year like this the usual blues might be bigger and all over the place. Maybe this year some of us can’t spend Christmas with our families, friends and other loved ones due to safety reasons or because of travel restrictions. The augmented anxieties caused by a pandemic might be all but impossible to escape. Whatever cause they might have or form they may take, here are some things you can do to help lessen your potential holiday blues.
When you’ve developed an unintended addiction to scrolling and scrolling and scrolling through the endless amounts of bad news – checking to the newest case numbers, the latest vaccine updates (or the newest conspiracy theories) – that’s called doomscrolling. Do yourself a favour, and cool it. Obviously you can stay updated with what’s happening in the world, but stick to doing this once a day or so. In fact, the less time you spend on social media, the better for your mental health and anxiety levels. Doomscrolling all day long won’t make you or your world any safer.
Avoid spending all day in a sedentary way.
Keeping active and moving will fight off those pesky feelings of melancholy. Just lying around and being unproductive is a great way to cultivate a less than positive mental state, so don’t do that. That being said, you’re allowed to be a bit lazy and just rest, but try to avoid doing it for hours at a time. Go for walks if possible, do yoga, find some home exercise videos, meditate, wash the dishes, read, stretch, clean, listen to music that makes you happy, do something artistic, dance with your dog – do anything that you enjoy doing and that keeps you moving at various times throughout the day.
Embrace technology as the safest way to see and spend time with friends and family.
For some this will be easy, for others completely unnatural,
but there’s absolutely no reason for social distancing, self-isolation,
lockdowns, or travel restrictions to completely derail your holidays. It might
feel unorthodox, but why not have a virtual Christmas dinner with your
grandparents that you can’t visit? Or a virtual cooking lesson with your mum?
Or have a Lord of the Rings viewing party with your friends with drinks and snacks? Get creative,
share your screen, play Pictionary or Uno online. Make the extra effort and
spend time with your loved ones. Thanks to technology, not even a pandemic can
stop you.
Nobody expected a year like this, but humans are resilient creatures; we’re creative and resourceful. Try not to forget that and let’s make the best of things as much as we can.
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