No Pleasure During The Holidays
Sadness is not at the level of depression, but can still be painful enough to cause you to feel no pleasure, especially during the holidays. If one is depressed, they’ll usually have their appetite, sleep, concentration, energy level, movements and thoughts affected; many can no longer attend work.
But if someone is sad, they feel unhappy, lousy and do not find much pleasure in the activities which they once enjoyed. Many people feel sad during the holidays for various reasons:
- They have no family to be around with
- They have no friends to be around with
- They are lonely and not surrounded by good company
- They are battling an injury that is providing them with great physical pain
- They are sad about other events in their lives
- They are experiencing Seasonal Affective Disorder or Major Depressive Disorder
. . . and so on. There is no one universal reason for feeling sad during the holidays, and there is no psychiatric diagnosis that combines sadness with the holidays. But sadness during the holidays does not necessarily mean that it’s a coincidence. The holidays are meant to be a time when close ones gather together to laugh and have fun!
Someone may know in advance that they will be spending the holidays by themselves, causing them to feel sad from ahead of time. When the holidays do arrive, they find themselves deprived of their spirit and joy; it’s as if they have turned into a living mummy. Their self-esteem goes out the window, and any motivation to derive some pleasure from the current situation is killed on the spot.
If you are experiencing sadness during the holidays, know that you are not alone! There are many people in your shoes experiencing the same feelings. Do not start to entertain suicidal thoughts due to the belief that you are a “loser” and by yourself; do not give depression power.
Even those who are around a boat of friends and family members may feel sad. A lot of times, sadness has nothing to do with who you are around with. Why do we hear stories of wealthy people and celebrities dying from drug overdoses? They had everything at their fingertips.
When feeling sad, find a way to become comfortable with your own presence; especially if no one is available for you to talk to! When you learn how to become comfortable with just “you,” things will start to feel better. And you can always contact The DSM Ready Community for love and support!
Happy holidays!
Are you Ready? (This is Defeating Stigma Mindfully)
DSM (Defeating Stigma Mindfully) 
Great post! I’m alone today on thanksgiving but quite happily so! I have few family members and those I do have are toxic. I’ve spent my entire life being stressed out and miserable during the holidays. But I always participated out of duty. Every year I told myself “never again”. This year I dreaded a certain family member who always invites me over. But lo and behold, she never asked! My son always spends thanksgiving with his dad. So, I planned several fun things to do by myself today. Also, I’m an introvert so I enjoy being alone anyway. A couple of friends have checked in on me to make sure I’m “okay” today which was sweet. I told them I’m having a blast! Right now I’ve got a casserole in the oven and I’m about to put up my Christmas tree. Loving it! 😀😀😀
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So sweet! Love it that you are enjoying yourself! Many people can learn from you message. Very powerful!
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Thank you. I had another thought. When I lived far from home in NYC, on thanksgiving I usually could find friends who were also alone and far from home. So we’d spend the holiday together…a Friends-giving 😀. What if you don’t have friends in town? Maybe there is a neighbor who is a widow. Or a person from work who is shy and you get the impression they might be alone. Invite them over! What’s the worst that could happen? Either they say no or the come and drink all your liquor then set your Christmas tree on fire…lol. Don’t be afraid to reach out! I’ve done this so many times. Usually, I get rejected. But so what? You just might make a big difference in someone’s life and make a new friend 😀😀😀
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Exactly! Well put. And with some humor! Nicely done Moody mom!
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Thanks. One Christmas, when I was married, our next door neighbor was a very shy man whose wife had recently left him. I was certain he’d be alone so I asked my husband about inviting him over for Christmas dinner. He refused! He thought the guy was weird. I was so mad at him…ugh
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That’s unfortunate. But it was very nice of you – seems like you have many kind bones in your body.
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Thank you. Many say I’m too kind and get taken advantage of. And that is true. But I am who I am. At the same time, I’m human and can be angry, overly emotional, inconsiderate….you get the idea. But I honestly live by the rule I’ve stressed to my son since he was very young: you treat everyone the same. With respect and kindness. Even if they’re horrible people who hurt you. You don’t stoop to their level. You always always behave with grace. And I’m so proud that now, at 15, he is so well behaved and polite and mature! It took years of repetition but my message finally got through to him!
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Very nice! And yes, you have to just be yourself, despite the cruelty from others. But you also have to protect yourself and not allow others to stomp over you.
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I know. I have issues with boundaries. *sigh*
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