Holiday Anxiety in 2020

Hello Improvers! This year is a *different* holiday season experience for most. Normal Holiday Anxiety, meet 2020 Holiday Anxiety. Reasons for seasonal stress often sound lengthy like the side effects list for the prescription drug commercials. Some of these may include:

Time away from work

This year vacations were canceled and planned time away was soooo 2019. Many people used time unexpectedly for health concerns or COVID-19 barriers. Others may not have accrued usual time off due to being unemployed or furloughed. If you were of the crew who has worked through it all this year, perhaps there is worry that work might continue to mount when not in the office.  That’s on par with difficulties of not being able to fully disconnect from work when on vacation, aka the fake-cation.  

Holiday slump or depression

In a season of gathering and sharing, it’s easy to get a feeling of aloneness. It may seem like everyone else has company and joy—even if socially distant this year—except for you. Another cause of holiday woes this year may be altered traditions. With families unable to travel and gather like usual, traditions that have been in place for generations may be forfeited. Another pluck of the heartstrings? Many may be celebrating a “first” holiday season: first holiday after the death of a loved one, first celebration with new baby, first celebration with a partner and their traditions. Wherever you are and however you’re celebrating, be sure to check in on loved ones and share your well wishes broadly.

Financial stress

In a season of spending, budgeting almost sounds like a dirty word. With many experiencing altered income this year—less profitable business, altered work hours, possible furlough &/or unemployment—it may be harder than ever to know how to save and spend. Guilt of not spending the holidays together egging you to spend more? You may want to crunch some numbers before taking on extra seasonal debt. Overspending is one of the season’s “gifts that keep on giving” and follows you into the new year.

Holiday deadlines

While free weekends may be a silver lining of 2020, there is still a hard deadline to get shopping done, cards in the mail, presents wrapped, and ship whatever is needed to avoid a tardy arrival. Add in a touch of “we don’t know what we are doing this year” and voila, you have 2020 holidays in a handbag. Extend your compassion when unable to extend deadlines.

Managing expectations

Whether the expectations are yours, your family, or your partner’s, it may be harder this year to find compromise and placate all parties this holiday season. Want to skip it all? Want to minimize travel? Feel comfortable with “the usual” celebration but others aren’t on the same page? It’s going to take extra communication this year more than others to manage expectations and ensure the reason for the season isn’t lost in translation when delving into logistics.

The good news? There are ways to address each of these to reduce anxiety around the holidays. A great first step: awareness. Once you identify which of these may be in play for you (or loved ones), it’s easier to try to work around them. Feel like you could use an extra hand? Schedule a life coaching session to work on improving together.

Help me round out the list, Improvers! What did I leave out? Email more topics to janice@improvewithjanice.com