12/17/2019
Seeking Help during the Holiday Season and Beyond
In normal circumstances, holidays are meant for recreation, recuperation from a stint of a long period of toil and happiness with family and friends. However, for some, the holiday season (usually during the U.S. winter months) turn out to be periods of stress, and painful reflections often referred to as Holiday Blues. Although holiday blues is not a recognized psychiatric condition in the DSM-5, the official manual that is often used to diagnose mental health conditions; this does not mean that the individual should not talk to a doctor about their symptoms. Understanding the signs and causes of holiday blues may be critical in the development of coping strategies and the effectiveness of treatment.
Symptoms
Symptoms may appear similar to clinical depression, except holiday blues are typically shorter in duration and are experienced mostly during the holiday season. Even people who love the holiday time can feel overwhelmed by high emotions and expectations of nonstop joy, cheer and commercial demands of buying and spending. Symptoms may be experienced by both adults and children. Some other signs include recurrent or persistent periods of sadness, signs of upbeat or depressive symptoms that start at the beginning or in the course of the holiday. Another sign is a change in sleep patterns, characterized by sleeping too much or less than the normal. Additionally, we may notice an individual displaying a lack of interest in normal activities and/or disinterest in fun activities as seen in others. Some may show signs of fatigue and exhaustion, loneliness and withdrawal or isolation from friends and family. Other signs include irritability, difficulties in concentrating and making basic decisions. Some symptoms may cease with the ending of the holidays, some may persist as individuals may reflect on the past year and experience feelings of regret or failure as the New Year approaches. However, critical circumstances may occur when these symptoms persist even after the holiday.
Causes
Holidays are associated with a myriad of potential causes. Among them include financial constraints or burden. This might occur after overstretching one’s budget to afford gifts. It’s also associated with strain coexisting with some family members, especially due to relationship strains. The condition is also caused by having unrealistic goals and failing to live up to reality. Exhaustion associated with work or enduring duties and lack of may also instigate the blues. Some people also suffer holiday blues due to isolation, loneliness, and lack of social support after choosing to spend the holiday in solitude. Sometimes, the lack of ability to visit ‘home’ due to economic constraints, prevailing weather conditions or court-order might instigate holiday blues. The blues could also be caused by the discovery or learning of a chronic illness.
Diagnosis
The diagnosis holiday blues starts with examining the symptoms to ensure that it’s actually holiday blues and not any other mental health illness. A doctor or mental health professional will thus ask a variety of questions to discover the symptoms, duration of prevalence, severity, and causes. An assessment may also involve testing for any persistent medical condition(s) that might have instigated the blues. The discovery of symptoms and their possible causes will enable the doctor to evaluate the best remedies for the condition, such as therapy, counseling and/or medication.
Treatment
Holiday blues may be treated through various strategies. Among these strategies include psychotherapy such as cognitive and behavioral therapy (CBT). Counseling may also be used in providing advice for lifestyle changes (such as objective spending, setting realistic goals, and better stress management) that may also help treat the condition.
Coping and How to Get Help
Coping strategies may include lifestyle changes, such as proper budgeting and adherence to budget, avoiding too much alcohol drinking, socializing and not isolating oneself, regular exercise, learning to say no, and accepting reality, though things might go below expectations.
In the event of experiencing the above-mentioned symptoms during and immediately after a holiday, it’s important to seek help from a trusted person, such as a parent. In persistence of the signs, it’s advisable to seek the help of a doctor and/or mental health professional.
References
Goin, Marcia Kraft “Practical Psychotherapy: What Is It About the Holidays?”
https://doi.org/10.1176/appi.ps.53.11.1369
Korstanje, M. E. (2016). Divorcing after Holidays: From Sacredness to Post-Vacation Blues Syndrome. In Global Dynamics in Travel, Tourism, and Hospitality (pp. 70-84). IGI Global.
Rudis, Jacqueline "True or false: depression and su***de rates rise during the holiday season." https://www.wnyurology.com/content.aspx?chunkiid=156980
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