University of Minnesota Moments: Holiday Blues

Transcript

[Announcer]: I’m Rick Moore with the University of Minnesota Moments. For most people the holiday season is an exciting time filled with parties, celebration and social gatherings. But for many people, it’s a time of sadness, self-reflection, loneliness and anxiety. Bruce Cuthbert, a U of M psychology professor, says there are several causes for holiday blues.

[Cuthbert]: There may be several different sources that vary for the individual. First, stress is generally defined as a condition or feeling that you experience when you perceive that the demands on you exceed what you have available to give. And that maybe with respect of time, or that may be money, or other aspects, and you just can’t get everything done. So you have to get the Christmas cards out, and you want to bake different cakes and get the turkey in, and get everything and you just don't have time to do all that. For others of us, we may have had a loss or divorce and it’s just a very lonely time; we’re alone and remember other times when we were with a lot of people and they were happy and so it seems like a particularly sad time.

[Moore]: Cuthbert has the following advice for beating holiday stress.

[Cuthbert]: One is to just really be systematic and try to sit down at the start of the season and decide what it is you really want to get done. If getting Christmas cards out or holiday cards is important, make sure you leave time for that. Be realistic; don’t think that you’re going to get the cards out and buy presents, and do everything in one evening. Just be realistic with your time and prioritize.

[Moore]: That’s Bruce Cuthbert for the University of Minnesota Moments.