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How to Care for Yourself Over the Holidays

CHS counselors and social workers give advice.

Features

By Mars Lancaster, Journalist

December 11, 2025

Nylee Harmon

How to Care for Yourself Over the Holidays

What struggles do you think can arise for people around the holidays? Brian Williams

I mean, the holidays for anybody and everybody can be the most joyous, most fun time, just a lot of excitement, or it can be kind of a downer, it can be difficult. It can bring up feelings and emotions. It can be both, right? It can be all of that.

What struggles do you think can arise for people around the holidays? Traci Blancke

The holidays can be really tricky, I think it's so dependent on which holidays people celebrate. So much of it depends on your family system, cultures and traditions. I think a lot tends to depend on your history with the holidays. Some struggles could be that people have a lot of financial struggles, for example. I know people have a lot of struggles around grief and loss because sometimes those things come up around the holidays. I think that people, especially school age children can struggle with sometimes being at home versus like in school, the structure can be kind of a change. And it depends on which holidays you celebrate, right? We see Christmas plastered everywhere and for people who don't celebrate Christmas that can be also very tricky. The weather's cool, so people tend to be inside more and might not be, you know, getting out and about being as active as they normally are. Just to name a few. Right? Because there's a lot there.

How do you think stress and mental health struggles or grief show up differently for people in the holiday season and during the winter? Williams

I think the winter is a little bit easier to talk about. I think sometimes in winter, especially in our state, can be a very difficult season. Some of the things that we are able to do when it's a little bit nicer, where we can go out and kind of help manage and balance and kind of reset when we're not feeling great, or when we're feeling stressed or down. And so for some people seasonal depression is a real thing. So I think seasonally, it is cold, and it just feels like we get stuck in the house and maybe the house isn't a great environment for some of us. So that can also impact people as they are working through or working with depression and those types of things.

With the holidays, myself, for example, my father passed away on December 19th. This was a long time ago, in 2003, but it was right leading into the holidays and it really threw me that year. And probably for the next couple of years. You know, you go through that first time without somebody or that sense of loss, especially with someone close. Especially if it was a big deal, around the holidays, to have those moments with those people. And so the next year was difficult, and then it got easier and then it's easier and easier, right? So it can show up in so many different ways, and those moments where you're supposed to feel joyous and festive, but might not all the time.

How do you think stress and mental health struggles or grief show up differently for people in the holiday season and during the winter? Blancke

I think sometimes it can be exacerbated because like we said, we live in Michigan so it's cold. It's usually dark. Vitamin D deficiency is really high in Michigan versus other states. Like Colorado, even though they get snow, they get like 365 days of sunshine. I mean that's not an accurate number, but they get way more sunshine than we do here. So there's those kinds of things physically that can happen, which also brings up the seasonal depression. I think people are really busy around the holidays, right? Like some families who maybe have family all over, they're doing lots of traveling, which can be hard and stressful, even though it's for fun. There's lots of obligations.

What is some advice that you have to people who are maybe struggling with some of that or for those who the holidays feel specifically difficult? Williams

First of all, it's okay to be sad and feel down. That's an okay thing, and it's a very natural and human experience. it's okay to not wanna talk to somebody right away. But I also encourage people to, if it's not feeling great, just to lean in on those people that you trust that care about you, that will either just sit there and listen or that you can do something with that just makes you feel a little bit more connected with another human. I think that human connection is a big deal. It doesn't mean you have to talk, you don't have to seek out advice from people. I think people are quick to give advice. But, understanding where you're at, knowing what kind of reflection you need to have if it's somebody that you lost recently. It's okay how to reflect and be sad and think about those memories that were great. But also make sure you're taking care of yourself and your basic needs. Make sure you're sleeping. Try to eat, even if you don't feel like it, just make sure you're nourishing your body. and give yourself time to reflect, but also find those moments where you do feel better and can find joy with people or experiences during those times.

What is some advice that you have to people who are maybe struggling with some of that or for those who the holidays feel specifically difficult? Blancke

Learn how to set boundaries, which is really hard. Sometimes especially around family,but being able to say no, or things like ‘okay I can't do that today’ or ‘we're going to do this, but we're not going to be able to do that’ or ‘I can prepare this meal or this food, but maybe I can't do all the things this year’. Especially if you're in a spot where your heart is feeling heavy for any reason. I think the other thing is to have your support system identified and even let them know what you need, which can be really hard, but being able to articulate and communicate that, I think is also key. So taking time for yourself and doing things like that while also, you know, finding a balance of meeting the needs of your family or friends.

About the Contributor

Mars Lancaster, Journalist

Mars Lancaster is a sophomore at Community high school, and this is his first semester in journalism. He spends a lot of time playing music, doing lighting for CET and spending time with friends.

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How to Care for Yourself Over the Holidays