The holiday season and Christmas Eve are just around the corner but so is holiday anxiety getting ready to rain itself upon itself. Anxiety around holidays is a common occurrence but it can sometimes turn into something much more severe, especially if it is the case that you have a pre-existing anxiety disorder. However, worry not as we are here to help find some solutions that can help in this context in tremendous ways.
Brief Words About Holiday Anxiety
Look, we all feel a little anxious around the holiday season. It‘s pretty common(1). This is especially true for many of us who are living far away from loved ones or just found we would have to work around the upcoming holidays. Sometimes, though, if this anxiety persists for the entire holiday season and you cannot find any way out, even with the coping measures that we are going to describe below, then it has probably transformed into something much worse or it was something pre-existing and you had no idea about it. Let’s find out what it could be:
Read More: Different levels of Anxiety & stages of anxiety recovery
It Could Be A Generalized Anxiety Disorder
Feeling a bit apprehensive about the holidays is alright but when this transforms into sleepless nights and endless worrying, something like Generalized Anxiety Disorder(2). If it is the case that you are not responding rationally then it is probably GAD at play but perhaps the table of differences(3) below might shine some light on holiday anxiety symptoms or GAD as an underlying problem:
| Differences | Normal Holiday Anxiety | General Anxiety Disorder |
| Intensity | Normal anxiety about the tasks related to holidays that is mild to moderate in intensity | Excessive anxiety over multiple aspects of the holidays, which can become severe and overwhelming over time |
| Persistence | Stress and anxiety about concerns related to the holiday season, for example, gifts and reserving holiday flights | Disproportionate and intense worry about different types of issues relating to the holiday |
| Behavior | Irritable and concerned about holiday events | Avoidance behavior, for example, avoiding social gatherings over the season |
| Symptomatic Fluctuations | Symptom fluctuations tend to abate once the holidays are over. Occasional physical symptoms like headaches or muscle tension tend to be present during this type of anxiety | Chronic symptoms such as nausea, stomach ache, muscle pain, and headaches persist even after the holiday is long gone |
This Holiday Anxiety Could Also Be Seasonal affective disorder (SAD)
This year’s winter blues about holiday anxiety could be just, well, blues. SAD is essentially characterized by holiday anxiety symptoms such as depressive moods, low energy, increased need for sleep, and irritability and it might be the contributing factor to your winter blues(4).
Read More: Anxiety and Eating Disorders: Understanding the link
Getting Rid of Anxiety During the Holidays
There are a couple of ways you can get rid of holiday anxiety during the holidays. These relate to some lifestyle changes while others relate to specific treatment suggestions for treating anxiety around the holidays or much more severe forms of it. Let’s see what are these:
Keeping Up With Circadian Rhythm AKA Your Internal 24-hour Biological Clock
Anxiety around the holidays or Christmas Eve, or winter blues as we call them sometimes, can come into existence due to the affected circadian rhythm, which is our internal 24-hour biological clock. This is because our circadian rhythm can influence sleep cycles and hormone release, which can be affected if the day-to-night cycle is not proper, which can be affected by the absence of daylight savings time during the winter. Sleep you know is tied to mental health and anxiety. As evidenced by a study done in 2017(5), excessive sleep disturbances manifest due to the affected circadian rhythm. This is why you are advised to keep your circadian rhythm properly adjusted.
Read More: How to Stop Feeling the Lightheadedness Anxiety Symptom?
Make Your Overall Health A Priority
Holiday anxiety during the holidays can also be pushed on you if you do not take good care of yourself, which you can if you want to. You can do this by eating healthy foods, staying physically active, and getting enough sleep. Additionally, avoiding alcohol can also make a significant difference as alcohol is a known risk factor for increased anxiety(6).
Find Your Support
You should never be ashamed of asking for support. It can come in different shapes and sizes. You can ask for support from your friends’ group, or family members, or you can just go for psychotherapy, which is essentially a “talk” therapy that helps you look inward to find resolutions for negative thought processes that contribute to problematic behavior. In this case, it can be holiday anxiety.
Planning Ahead and Scheduling
Planning ahead and scheduling should never be underestimated. Both of these can help you avoid anxiety triggers that lead to anxiety around holidays or the upcoming Christmas Eve. This way you can find out what stresses you and what doesn’t during the holiday season. Once you know that you can circumvent these stressors by scheduling around it, not for it.
Read More: Anxiety and Eating Disorders: Understanding the link
Wrapping Up!
We hope you like our recommendations to circumvent your holiday anxiety. If it doesn’t help, you can always refer to the Inland Empire Behavioral Group to treat holiday anxiety and the holidays’ related issues related to mental health. We are not just equipped to deal with that but also other conditions like psychosis, OCD, eating disorder, and bipolar disorder through treatment methods like psychiatric medication management, telehealth psychiatry, and psychotherapy,
