Mental health expert gives key piece of advice to people who dread the festive period

For a lot of people, Christmas is the best time of the year - but some don't look forward to the festive season quite the same.

Christmas is a busy time of year: seeing family and friends, going to work Christmas parties, buying gifts, preparing for the big day itself - the list goes on and on.

And while some thrive during the festive season, some people can understandably find it quite overwhelming.

According to the National Alliance on Mental Health (NAMI), as of 2014, 64 percent of people with mental illness report that holidays make their conditions worse.

This can be for a host of reasons, ranging from high expectations of Christmas, financial stresses, loneliness, and so on.

NAMI medical director Ken Duckworth said at the time of the survey: "For many people the holiday season is not always the most wonderful time of the year.

"What the survey shows is a tremendous need for people to reach out and watch out for each other in keeping with the spirit of the season."

And mental health expert and counsellor Michelle Ruth has since echoed similar sentiments while speaking to UNILAD.

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She told us: "Christmas can be a very difficult time of year for many different reasons – grief, money worries, loneliness, family conflict, the list is endless and societal expectations often compound these feelings.

"We are surrounded by messages via ads, in supermarkets etc that we should be having a picture-perfect Christmas, even Christmas songs churn out messages about it being the most wonderful time of the year, when in fact for so many people it can be quite the opposite.

"This can cause anxiety and disappointment that our reality isn’t good enough."

In a bid to deal with the stress and high expectations Christmas brings, Michelle has urged people to 'make a plan for how you want your festive period to be and take control of it'.

"Think about what your triggers may be, what you may need, what works for you and work backwards from there," she explained.

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"Put measures in place to keep yourself emotionally safe.

"It is easy to get swept up in arrangements that don’t quite work for you because you don’t want to feel like you’re letting people down or missing out, but if what you’ve agreed to is giving you anxiety, think about what may better suit your needs, and make arrangements that nurture you and make you feel good.

"If you do this, you may find that you can look forward to the festive period rather than dread it."

Yes, Christmas is a time about celebrating with family and friends - but it's also about celebrating you and your achievements over the past year.

"Try to put yourself in the driving seat of your festive period," Michelle went on to urge.

And if this means watching The Holiday on your own at home with a glass of Baileys, then so be it.

Christmas is for enjoying - not for making your mental health worse.

If you're struggling over the festive period, reach out contact NAMI by calling 1-800-950-NAMI (6264), texting 'HelpLine' to 62640 or emailing [email protected].

For urgent 24-hour assistance, call the Suicide and Crisis Lifeline on 988.

Topics: Christmas, Mental Health, Life

Niamh Shackleton

Niamh Shackleton is an experienced journalist for UNILAD, specialising in topics including mental health and showbiz, as well as anything Henry Cavill and cat related. She has previously worked for OK! Magazine, Caters and Kennedy.

@niamhshackleton