Christmas fills some with joy and others with dread. It is often a time of ought to, need to, should do and duty. Decisions, arrangements and shopping which for some light up the darkness of winter and for others make them want to hunker down and hibernate.
The social pressure for Christmas (and indeed New Year's Eve) to be a time of fun can turn to stress if you feel you are not having fun. The expectation of having a wonderful time is in itself filled with feelings of failure if you're not having a wonderful time.
For many, the pressure of Christmas starts earlier in the year when trying to decide who to spend it with - navigating the feelings of various sets of parents, in-laws or siblings who perhaps all want a bit of you at Christmas or who you feel duty bound to spend some time with. This often causes tension between couples when deciding whose parents they will visit/invite this year.
The truth is christmas can be an unhappy time for many - a time of difficult childhood memories; of the absence of loved ones; recollections of loss and illness; a reminder of ones own loneliness at a time when everyone else is with someone.
At this time, family members unnaturally forced together, mixed with alcohol and rich food, can fuel some fiery family feuds and cause couples to come apart at the seams. It can be a tough time for many.
Let me know if I can be of any help to you either before or after, but in the meantime I wish my readers a 'Good Enough' Xmas and abundant health and happiness in the coming year.