Quote:
Originally Posted by Rose76
I enjoyed the holiday season. The past few months were a time of me feeling at my best. I put up a nice tree and a Nativity set and other decorations. I was drinking hot chocolate every morning out of a Christmas mug. I have Christmas candles in every room. I have Christmas towels. There are lighted Christmas decorations in the windows. I have Christmas jewelry. I could go on, but you get the idea. I really get into Christmas. Now it's over, and I feel sad. I didn't want Christmas to end.
Lots of people who live alone say they find Christmas a lonely time. Not me. Though I live alone, I did not feel lonely over the holidays. Due to COVID I have been avoiding people. However, I did hear from relatives and friends - mostly by phone. I felt cozy and safe in my nicely decorated apartment home. I enjoyed watching Christmas programming on TV. I made nice meals for myself. I listened to Christmas music. The world feels magical to me at Christmastime. I keep it going for the whole traditional "12 days," up through Jan. 5. Now, that magic is gone and I feel kind of down.
Does anyone else find that the holiday season and its aftermath play havoc with their emotional state?
I had planned to take down my tree and other decorations on Jan 7. Well, today is Jan 8, and I've not even begun to pack up my Christmas things. All day I have felt so down. I spent most of today either in bed or on the couch. I don't want this to become a major tailspin into depression. This evening I got really bad in feeling: What now?
I suppose no one enjoys having to pack a bunch of stuff away. It's work. Still, I don't think my main problem is laziness. It's something else that I don't fully understand. Every year I get the post-holiday blues. Last year it was really severe and lasted a few months. I don't want to let myself get that way again. I'm getting a bit scared that I'm going to take a nosedive into depression.
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One thing that helps some people is to take down only the Christmas decoration and then put up Valentine's Day decorations - including on the Christmas Tree. Some people have even opted to get a white or pink tree to use for both occasions, to make the season last longer.
I got triggered on Christmas for some reason, but such is my PTSD and DID stuff. But still, there are other Christmases where I felt like I was truly in the Christmas spirit and loved to decorate, etc. I also loved the smells of apple and cinnamon, etc.
It is sad to see life go back to the dreadful focus on pandemic surges, etc. All the beauty and magic with Christmas bring back some sense of "normalcy" amid this ongoing pandemic. It's not surprising then when people are sad about missing Christmas.
Perhaps you can make a new tradition for January going forward to maintain a sense of video or outdoor connection with loved ones and friends, to find healthy and safe ways to socialize and perhaps do a new trend of sharing redecorating tips for the home, or organization tips for the home. And while you're doing that, you can also invent a decoration theme for both the lingering winter season coupled with the upcoming Valentine's Day season. You need not celebrate Valentine's Day. You could instead decide to decorate with white lights, like SarahSweets mentioned, or some other winter-to-spring color, like pastels. You can find a group of people to do that with, too, and then share photos online or via text. That might help the spirit of celebrating going when Christmas is all said and done - and it would be your own invention, or your close family and/or friends invention together.
