03/12/2025
If you are grieving this holiday season . . .
Be easy on yourself.
Tread lightly.
Seeing everyone in the holiday spirit will make you feel like you are living in a different world.
Elvis Presley’s song Blue Christmas has never been more relatable.
The lights may not sparkle as bright. Home may not feel the same. It’s just a really hard time right now.
So be gentle with yourself.
It’s ok to not look forward to it. It’s ok that you have been bracing yourself since the calendar flipped to November. (And maybe just want to skip to January.) It's ok that you have anxiety about how you will feel. It's ok if your neighbor's 14-foot inflatable elf doesn’t make you smile.
It’s ok if nothing looks or feels the same right now.
Because it will be different. And you will survive it.
Take deep breaths. Leave places early if need be. Keep lists small. Don’t take on things if your heart isn’t in it. Ask for help. Even change up some traditions if you need to.
Take it easy on your broken heart. You cannot expect too much from yourself this year. And nobody else expects it either. (And if they do they must not have been through this yet.)
And you know what? Sometimes the anticipation is worse than the actual event.
So go easy.
You are not alone.
There are many of us.
We will survive this holiday season.
And remember to . . .
Give yourself the gift of grace and extra care.
Shared with permission from The After Glow