COLUMN: Let’s Talk Mental Health – Dealing with post-holiday stress

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This article was published 06/01/2025 (446 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Let’s talk about post-holiday stress. Many people become emotionally charged for holidays or vacations. We know we deserve holiday time to spend with family and friends after working so hard at the same job, day after day just to earn a living and support our families.

Sometimes we spend weeks or months preparing for Christmas, other religious holidays, and New Years, only to have it over too quickly. So, it’s no wonder 25 percent of us will experience a post-holiday letdown, possibly becoming depressed and anxious within a few days. People with depression may experience increased symptoms as the holiday hopefulness begins to wane. This can lead to increases in depression’s severity and to thoughts of suicide. Sadly, suicide rates often rise after the holidays.

There are precautions we can take to avoid or minimize post-holiday stress and depression. When we notice the blues beginning, we sit quietly for 20 minutes and think of good things that happened during the season, things that made us feel good about ourselves and the world. We can write a “success list” for next year’s planning to ensure those good things happen again. This will involve focus on things we received, blessings we have, and refusal to dwell on what we didn’t receive or don’t have.

It’s a good time to rededicate ourselves to spiritual values. We can set goals for projects to help with at church or a service club or we can choose projects that reflect our personal spirituality. Learning a new way to pray or meditate would renew us after the holiday busyness. We often forget that prayer is for any time and any reason. So, we can offer a prayer in thanks for good things we received and those who gave them.

The spirit of gratitude can motivate more active remedies as well. Starting next year’s gift list now and taking advantage of after Christmas bargains will give us the anticipation of gift-giving again next year and the satisfaction of bargain prices. Choosing to call each person who gave us a gift can lead to deeper connections with loved ones and allows us to verbalize gratitude. We could call an old friend and get reacquainted. We may find we still have much in common; our hearts will warm and our spirits will lift as we share memories.

Another active way to lift our spirits is by helping less fortunate families, much as we did in December. Poverty is not limited to Christmas; many needy families need help in January and February also. Helping can give us a sense of purpose and satisfaction.

Another idea is family meetings twice a month to discuss what’s going on for all of us. Sharing opinions, frustrations, fears, and good feelings will help us support each other and ease stress for all. Planning the next family vacation might provide something positive for everyone to anticipate.

People often ask

Q. How can I help someone with post-holiday depression?

A. Begin by talking to your friend of your concerns. Ignoring depression only communicates an uncaring attitude. Support and respectful listening can be very helpful. Be prepared perhaps to hear difficult things. Your friend’s response could lead to a frank discussion about a serious condition.

There will be symptoms you may have noticed or your friend may share with you.

Know your local resources and don’t hesitate to suggest getting help from a trained professional. Depression is a medical condition that is very treatable. The most effective treatments usually involve a combination of individual counseling and medication.

If you’re concerned that suicide may be a possibility, give your friend the local crisis line phone number and offer to stay with them during the call. You can also call the crisis center yourself to get information about helping your friend if they can’t call.

Remember that when holiday festivities end, depressed people may realize their lives have not suddenly improved. This can be very difficult for many and help from a caring friend like you can be invaluable.