When I was a little lad, I used to look forward to the excitement
of Christmas, the sparkle that’s in the high streets, the yummy food that seems
to appear at every opportunity.
Many years later, life caring for somebody who finds the build
up to Christmas, with the noise and the different routines, brings it home to me,
that for some the time is hard… very hard.
Just this week I’ve chatted to people who are dealing with
bereavement, loneliness, depression and anxiety - that become much more significant
with Christmas - where everybody should
be happy, shouldn’t they?
Earlier this month, we held a “round table” with the Peer to
Peer Support Network at work, to discuss the stresses and strains of the
Christmas season, and how to survive it.
We had a great chat! If you want to listen to the recording
and work for BT, let me know, If you don’t yet work for BT, then see here: https://www.btplc.com/careercentre/
We finished the call with a list of suggestions from folk as
to how they cope with the stresses of the festive season…. If you are struggling,
or likely to struggle, why not try some of these ideas? They may not be
suitable for all, but, as we know, everybody is different!
If you have any other ideas, leave them in the comments…
Ø Buy
a ready-made dessert for Christmas Day
Ø Get
the kids to help!
Ø Give-up
on Christmas Day being the ‘special day’ for presents
Ø Don’t
go overboard with food and drink
Ø No
expectations and no plans
Ø Lots
of good food!
Ø Dogmass!
– alternative Christmas, takes the focus off Christmas
Ø ‘Stagger’
Christmas Lunch! Have it over the whole
day
Ø Give
up on events that you don’t have to go to anymore
Ø Can
you make a change so that you can do what you really want to do?
Ø Burger
and chips on Christmas Day!
Ø Watch
a film and play games
Ø Do
a pot luck on Boxing Day, share the load
Ø Don’t
be pinned down to times and dates – do what suits you
Ø Giving
– remember small things can mean a lot to others
Ø Play
games with family
Ø Cut
off for housework on Christmas Eve
Ø Don’t
buy presents – saves the pressure on time and money
Ø Avoid
transport
Ø Music
and scent to make it feel like Christmas – but no pressure to make it perfect
Ø Secret
Santa – saves a lot of time and pressure
However your Christmas is, please be safe, and take time to talk to others.
