Dealing with Holiday Blues
The old timers called it melancholy. Some today call it depression. Modern vernacular calls it the blues. Many face feelings of extreme sadness and melancholy during the Christmas season and Christians are not immune. It might be helpful to understand some reasons why you might feel this way and take biblical steps to address it.
Physiological issues
Sometimes feelings of sadness and depression are more about physical circumstances than you might realize. The holidays occur around the winter solstice and the lack of daylight can have a depressing impact upon the human spirit.[i] Add to this the impact of inclement weather and lack of time outside and the problem compounds. Eating habits also change during the holidays. It is baking season! The excess consumption of sugar can also lead to depression.[ii]Cold weather season usually puts a damper on physical activity, especially for people who do not have regular exercise habits. Lack of exercise is also associated with depression.[iii] Along with our schedules, the hustle and bustle of holiday activities means staying up late and getting up early. In order to combat fatigue during the day many increase caffeine consumption and the end result is lack of sleep. Guess what? Yes. Lack of sleep is also associated with depression. [iv] Add to that things like stress and other issues and it is easy to see why feeling bad during the holidays is common.
Mourning
Some renew mourning during the holidays. The holiday season is a marker—a reminder. The music emphasizes the past, childhood, kids, love,and family. The holiday season becomes a time where we mourn again what we have lost. Sometimes we mourn lost loved ones. Other times we mourn things like lost childhood, innocence, health, finances, and much more. All the scenes of the idyllic family around the Christmas tree remind us of our dysfunctions and flaws.
False Expectations
Secular holiday music and the commercialism of the holidays can test our sanity. They often depict a euphoria of joy and happiness during the season that is not attainable in the real world. Gifts and “gifting” do not actually make anyone THAT happy. People do not automatically fall in love during the Christmas season in the way they do in every sappy holiday movie. Family relationships do not necessarily get miraculously resolved at Christmas. When we allow fantasy to somehow become our personal expectation of what the holidays should do for us, we will end up disappointed and depressed.
So what should a Christian do?
Pay attention to the stewardship of your body during the holiday season.
What? Know ye not that your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost which is in you, which ye have of God, and ye are not your own? For ye are bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body,and in your spirit, which are God’s. 1 Corinthians 6:19-20.
Be aware of the body that God gave you and take care of it during the holiday season. Enjoy the wonderful food, but know your limits and how the various foods impact your health and mood. Get the sleep you need. Cut back on the caffeine. Take a walk. Get out of the house. Get into the sunshine for a few minutes. While these are life’s pleasures, they are also necessities. It is interesting that both self-control and joy are fruit of the Holy Spirit. We often deceive ourselves into thinking they are mutually exclusive.
Turn mourning into thankfulness.
In everything give thanks, for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you. 1 Thessalonians 5:18
Appropriate mourning is not a bad thing. In that remarkable verse in John 11:35, Jesus wept. It was a time of mourning for his friend Lazarus. He mourned even though He knew He would raise Lazarus from the dead. He mourned with those that were mourning (Romans 12:15). But for a believer we have the capacity to turn mourning into joy through thankfulness. We can thank God for the blessing of the people He has put into our lives. We can thank God for the many blessing with which He has surrounded us at this present moment. We can be thankful that we are doing so much better than we deserve, no matter how difficult our present situation.
Look forward.
If ye then be risen with Christ, seek those things which are above, where Christ sitteth on the right hand of God. Set your affection on things above, not on things on the earth. For ye are dead, and your life is hid with Christ in God. When Christ,who is our life, shall appear, then shall ye also appear with him in glory. Colossians 3:1-4
The culture of Christmas looks backwards. This is the time of year to get teary-eyed and sentimental. Merchandisers profit from the fact that many try to spend (or drink, or eat) their way out of depression, loss and regret. For believers we ought to look backwards with a sense of love and thanksgiving.However, lingering in the past–especially past losses, regrets, and hurts–can overwhelm us.
The true joy for the Christian is that no matter how much is behind us, the best is always in front of us. The day will come when we will fellowship in person with our Lord who is our life. In that moment, we will not long for “Christmases long long ago.” He will wipe all tears from our eyes. We will remember with joy and thanksgiving but we will find absolute joy and fulfillment in the eternal present with the Christ who long ago came as a Babe in Bethlehem to live perfectly and sacrifice Himself for our redemption. In that day every loss, every Christmas gift, every carol will pale in the glow of the presence of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.
Joy to the world, the Lord is coming! Let earth receive her
King!
[i] https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/seasonal-affective-disorder/symptoms-causes/syc-20364651.
[ii] https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/neuronarrative/201709/the-link-between-sugar-and-depression-what-you-should-know.
[iii] https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/depression/in-depth/depression-and-exercise/art-20046495.
[iv] https://www.sleepfoundation.org/excessivesleepiness/content/the-complex-relationship-between-sleep-depression-anxiety.