Caring for Your Mental Health During the Holiday Season
By Andrea Lahana
The holiday season is often presented as a joyful and celebratory time. Yet many people experience stress, loneliness, grief, or emotional overwhelm during this time of year. Research shows that increased social expectations, disruptions in routine, and financial pressures can significantly impact emotional well-being (American Psychological Association, 2022). Your feelings are valid. At Elliant Counseling Services, we support the full range of your experience.
The holidays can bring both meaningful connection and emotional activation. You may feel excitement and gratitude while also feeling sadness, stress, or fatigue. Multiple truths can coexist. Giving yourself permission to honor all of your emotional experiences can reduce internal pressure and support nervous system balance (Siegel, 2012).
Common Challenges During the Holidays
Pressure to meet social or family expectations
Grief and longing for loved ones who are no longer present
Changes in routine impacting coping skills and regulation
Financial stress connected to travel or gift-giving (APA, 2022)
Increased interpersonal triggers within family systems (Kerr & Bowen, 1988)
These reactions are normal. They reflect the nervous system responding to stress, memory, and relational patterns.
Supportive Practices for This Season
Honor Boundaries That Protect Your Emotional Well-Being
Research shows that setting clear boundaries can reduce stress and increase emotional resilience (Smith & Nichols, 2015). It is okay to say no to events, step outside when overwhelmed, or choose environments that feel safe.
Incorporate Small Moments of Regulation
Regulation does not need to be large or time-consuming. Slow breathing, mindful movement, or placing a hand over the heart can support the parasympathetic nervous system and reduce stress responses (Porges, 2011). A few minutes of grounding can shift the tone of your day.
Return to What Matters Most
Reflect on your personal values. Research suggests that values-based decision making can decrease anxiety and improve emotional clarity (Hayes et al., 2012). Ask yourself what is meaningful to you this season. Let your choices align with that truth.
Reach Out When Support Would Feel Nourishing
Connection with supportive others is a protective factor for mental health (Cohen & Wills, 1985). Whether through therapy, trusted friends, or community practices, being emotionally witnessed can ease feelings of isolation or overwhelm.
If This Season Feels Heavy
Grief does not pause for holidays. Trauma memories do not disappear on command. Family relationships can evoke old emotional patterns, even when we are doing our healing work.
It is okay if your experience does not match the cultural narrative of joy. You are not behind, broken, or failing. You are human, responding to complexity with the resources you currently have.
We Are Here With You
At Elliant Counseling Services, we provide trauma-informed, mindfulness-based, somatic, and relational therapy to support your emotional ecosystem throughout the year. If seasonal stress, grief, burnout, or family dynamics are affecting you, you do not have to navigate it alone.
You deserve compassion. You deserve space to feel. You deserve to move at your own pace.
Wishing you gentleness this season,
The Elliant Counseling Services Team
Embrace the courage to change and contact Elliant Counseling Services to schedule a free confidential consultation today!
References
American Psychological Association. (2022). Stress in America 2022. APA.
Cohen, S., & Wills, T. A. (1985). Stress, social support, and the buffering hypothesis. Psychological Bulletin, 98(2), 310-357.
Hayes, S. C., Strosahl, K., & Wilson, K. (2012). Acceptance and commitment therapy: The process and practice of mindful change. Guilford Press.
Kerr, M., & Bowen, M. (1988). Family evaluation. W. W. Norton.
Porges, S. W. (2011). The polyvagal theory: Neurophysiological foundations of emotions, attachment, communication, and self-regulation. W. W. Norton.
Siegel, D. J. (2012). The developing mind: How relationships and the brain interact to shape who we are. Guilford Press.
Smith, T., & Nichols, T. (2015). Boundary setting as an intervention for stress reduction. Journal of Counseling Research, 48(3), 215-227.