Look after your mental elf (mental health) this Christmas

Christmas can bring its own unique challenges to mental health. Expectations and apprehension can be high ahead of the big day, with uncertainties and our oldest interpersonal relationships pulling at the strings of neuroses. 

Whether it's stress about selecting the right gifts for the right person, ramping financial anxiety at all the extra costs, the chaos of Christmas dinner catering, refereeing long-running family differences, or processing unavoidably painful memories of lost loved ones, the truth is that people may not always be quite as jolly as they appear. Or feel they should appear. For others, a casual seasonal assumption that they will spend the day with other people can make their isolation and loneliness feel all the more painful and stigmatised.

There is naturally an element of festive performance to proceedings, vibrant jumpers and twinkling decorations. And this can come with a strain. Carving out some time for yourself might not be an easy or simple task. Managing boundaries in a busier than usual house could be impossible. 

Nobody wants to feel like they're bringing the atmosphere down, so what can you do to reduce the chance of being driven Christmas crackers?

The answer, perhaps disappointingly, is the same as it is at any other time of the year. Remember the basics: diet, exercise, sleep, hygiene.

1. Consumption

Mindless binge eating and drinking is more normalised at this time of year. We are encouraged, often by advertising and the idea of consumption as a social adhesive, to sit back and consume consume consume. Largely sugar, salt and fat. We don't have to. It's arguably one of the hardest times of the year to say No, because the glaring light of people-pleasing expectation burns so bright. (If they all are, then I probably should too). But you still can say No. It is not an impossibility. And you might ultimately feel better if you do.

2. Movement

Remember that basic movement can be beneficial for mental health, for freeing you from an anxiously circling thought pattern. Simply standing up and returning blood flow to other parts of your body can be helpful after a period of sedentary gaming, or television watching. A Christmas walk can be useful, and it's actually ok if you want to take it alone, sneak out for a few minutes and maybe leave your phone behind, connect in some small way with nature and things outside you and your family.

3. Sleep

Sleep can feel strongly distorted in the UK and northern hemisphere, with significantly reduced daylight. Make the most of what is afforded to you, consider consistency around mealtimes, bedtimes, and waketimes. Consider light therapy. Consider how alcohol and diet and screentime might be impacting sleep quality. Routines are inevitably disrupted around this time of year, which can be difficult for many, but you can still take control if you want to.

4. Hygiene

We might spend a little more time than usual in festive pyjamas around the big day, but be careful not to take it too far. There can be great power in having a shower, and feeling clean and refreshed. Rather than sluggish, weary, and resigned.

5. Existential Angst

Christmas and the turn of the year tends to invite greater reflection and introspection. You'll see year reviews and you might ponder how much you have or haven't developed or grown in some way over the last 12 months. The things you planned to do that you haven't, or that you have. The empty calendar waiting to be turned over can look daunting. Wow, look at all that time. How am I going to fill it? I can't believe I'm going to turn ~InsertAge~ this year. I'm so old.

Yes, sure, but you're also as young as you're ever going to be right now. You are alive. There is still an abundance of opportunity and possibility. You can have power and control of your life and what happens next. It might feel cold and dark and dank outside right now. You might quite naturally feel like hibernating. But there will be more daylight and sunshine and new life again. Live in hope. All of the above is much easier said, and written, than done. It's ok to fail, lose your temper, feel miserable, behave imperfectly when juggling multiple stressors, over-indulge and have a long lie in. Awareness, acknowledgement and (if necessary) apology can all be useful tools.

Best wishes for 2026. Or if you're reading this some time in the future, best wishes for today.