At this time of year it seems that we often get the message that we should be enjoying spending time with our families and loved ones. We see lots of messages and images in the media and on social media of people enjoying the ‘perfect’ Christmas. We get told it is ‘the most wonderful time of the year’.

But for some people Christmas and the festive period can be difficult, for all sorts of reasons. We may have lost a loved one, and this is our first Christmas without them. We may be unwell, or have a loved one who is unwell, and worry that this might be our last Christmas together. We might have difficult relationships with people in our family. We might be struggling with our mood or emotions, or have difficulties around eating, that make it hard to enjoy the festivities.

The messages we get from the media and social media can make an already difficult time even more difficult. We can find ourselves making unhelpful comparisons to what we see in the media and on social media. This can make us feel even worse as we feel everyone else is having a better time than us. 

In case you need a reminder: what you see in the media or on social media is not real! 

If you are finding things difficult at this time of year, you are not alone. Lots of other people are probably also having a difficult time. We just don’t often talk about it.

If you need someone to talk to over the festive period there are lots of helplines available. I’ve listed a few below:

Samaritans: https://www.samaritans.org/wales/

Mind: https://www.mind.org.uk/ 

BEAT (the eating disorders charity): https://www.beateatingdisorders.org.uk/ 

Relate (for information around relationships): https://www.relate.org.uk/ 

Cruse (bereavement support): https://www.cruse.org.uk/

Marie Curie (for support around terminal illness and bereavement):https://www.mariecurie.org.uk/ 

I hope you can be gentle with yourself and have a good enough Christmas and festive period.

Taryn

7th December 2024