Things You Can Do If You Aren’t Feeling The Holiday Spirit
The holiday season is a special time of the year to celebrate thankfulness, give thoughtful presents to your loved ones, and reflect on the past year as you get ready for a new one to start. The world is basically one big Hallmark movie with Christmas magic all around you.
But, what if you aren’t feeling the holiday spirit?
You aren’t alone. Some years are hard, and it’s easy to get caught up in all of the stress of trying to check off every item on your to-do list until you are feeling anything but holly jolly.
Things You Can Do If You Aren’t Feeling The Holiday Spirit
If you are having a hard time finding your holiday spirit this year, here are a few things you can do.
Accept That The Holiday Season Can Be Hard
Sit with your feelings and accept that you are not overflowing with holiday spirit. That’s okay. It’s important to acknowledge your feelings and look at what might be causing them. Maybe you are missing a special person who can’t be with you for Christmas this year, or you can’t make it home for the holidays, or maybe you are putting in so many extra hours at work you are exhausted every night when you come home. Allow yourself to accept the things you can’t change about this year and then you can be ready to identify some things that can make you feel better.
If pulling the tree down from the attic and decorating the whole house feels like too much, maybe you can light a holiday-scented candle in the evenings or give yourself permission to change your screensaver to a Christmas theme as decorating for the year.
Make A Gratitude List
This is something I do quite frequently. Focus on the thing that are going well. Write down three things you are thankful for each morning. It’s a great way to start your day with positivity.
If you feel comfortable, you could even share your gratitude list. Write little notes to people telling them why you are thankful for them, or share one thing from your list on an Instagram Story every day.
Do Something Nice For Someone Else
There are a lot of great opportunities to volunteer, give back, and help others during the holiday season.
- Donate to your favorite charity
- Adopt a family for Christmas and buy presents for the kids
- Bake cookies for your neighbors – every year I carry on the tradition of my grandmothers spritz cookies
- Volunteer at a shelter
- Help an elderly friend or family member decorate their home for the holiday
- Stash a stack of gift cards in your bag and pass them out randomly to people you don’t know
Set Up A Secret Santa
Maybe you can’t buy gifts for everyone on your list this year, but you can set up a gift exchange for everyone on your list! This could be a super traditional Secret Santa where you get a group of friends together and everyone draws names to exchange gifts at a party, or you could set up a Secret Santa with a group of friends online and everyone can share a picture of the gift they receive in a text group and guess who drew their name.
Remember to be kind to yourself if you are having a tough holiday season this year. Think of one small thing you can do every day and focus on the small stuff. A new year is coming, and that’s a great opportunity for a fresh start.
XOXO,
BLENDstyles