does christmas make you sad?

Contributor: aliceinthehole aliceinthehole
was just listening to the charlie brown christmas album... why are some christmas songs so sad? they make me feel a sense of really depressing nostalgia... i'm reminded of childhood lost, the poor living winters in the cold, and soldiers away from their families at the most family-oriented time of the year.


does anyone else get sad sometimes during the holidays?

thanks for voting.
Answers (private voting - your screen name will NOT appear in the results):
i sometimes get sad around christmas
73  (77%)
i never get sad around christmas
13  (14%)
the holidays make me really happy!
9  (9%)
Total votes: 95
Poll is closed
12/20/2011
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Contributor: AndroAngel AndroAngel
I need an option for "I always get sad around the holidays." It's the most depressing time of the year.
12/20/2011
Contributor: MrWishyWashy MrWishyWashy
I'm happy during the holidays!
12/20/2011
Contributor: aliceinthehole aliceinthehole
Quote:
Originally posted by AndroAngel
I need an option for "I always get sad around the holidays." It's the most depressing time of the year.
i'm sorry! i realized as soon as i posted it that i'd forgotten that. thanks for sharing. i often think so too.
12/20/2011
Contributor: Peggi Peggi
I've never really gotten sad around the holidays for any particular reason, but this year I'm a bit bummed because my guy just can't get into the holiday spirit...for ANY holiday! Birthdays, Christmas, Thanksgiving, Valentines day...they're just "another day on the calendar" which has me a bit depressed this year.
12/20/2011
Contributor: (k)InkyIvy (k)InkyIvy
It's sort of a mixed feeling for me. I'm really happy, because I LOVE giving people gifts (I get so excited to see how well I did at picking things out), and christmas lights give me the warm-and-fuzzies, and I like the music (though, not constantly), and it's just an overall happy time for me.
But at the same time, I get sad because I think of the people who don't have someone to spend the holidays with, or they can't go home to be with their loved ones. I try to make a small donation of hats and scarves and stuff to the homeless shelter every year, which makes me feel like I'm helping at least a little bit.
12/20/2011
Contributor: null null
I normally get a little sad. I don't enjoy being off from school, I don't enjoy being home, and there's always looking back at all the bad things that happened in passed Christmases to make me sad.
12/20/2011
Contributor: PassionateLover2 PassionateLover2
We should all rejoice at this time of season; it is the birth of our Savior, Jesus Christ!
12/20/2011
Contributor: Chirple Chirple
Not sad, but really frustrating and stressful.
12/20/2011
Contributor: Antipova Antipova
I used to get really sad around Christmas, and then I stopped celebrating it and now I'm a lot better.
12/20/2011
Contributor: js250 js250
I get sad when I think of everyone who is no longer with us family wise, poor people with children and those who have no one to celebrate with. I am greatful and happy for what I have during the holidays, but there is some melancholy to the season.
12/20/2011
Contributor: deltalima deltalima
I used to love the holidays...
12/21/2011
Contributor: AndroAngel AndroAngel
Quote:
Originally posted by aliceinthehole
i'm sorry! i realized as soon as i posted it that i'd forgotten that. thanks for sharing. i often think so too.
I kinda wish I didn't, but the attitude this time of year just makes me sad for humanity. The one bright spot for me is Yule, because it's a holiday that says "We're halfway out of the dark. From here on out, the days will get longer and the sun will return."
12/21/2011
Contributor: aliceinthehole aliceinthehole
Quote:
Originally posted by PassionateLover2
We should all rejoice at this time of season; it is the birth of our Savior, Jesus Christ!
we must remember though, that not everyone believes in the christian christmas, and many celebrate the season for different reasons. even when i was christian, christmas was still sad for me. there's something very somber about it. even in many of the songs, a very reflective, dark tone is taken. it's almost mournful.
but i suppose that would fall in line with my memories of catholicism as well - mournful.

sigh. i do get excited by all the lights, the gift-giving, the snow, the colors, and snuggling up with hot chocolate and a loved one. still, there's something so melancholy about it all.
12/21/2011
Contributor: aliceinthehole aliceinthehole
Quote:
Originally posted by js250
I get sad when I think of everyone who is no longer with us family wise, poor people with children and those who have no one to celebrate with. I am greatful and happy for what I have during the holidays, but there is some melancholy to the season.
yes, melancholy is the word! and it does make me think of family members lost, and those who will soon be gone. i'm not sure why, but it's incredibly nostalgic, in a saddening way.
12/21/2011
Contributor: aliceinthehole aliceinthehole
Quote:
Originally posted by Antipova
I used to get really sad around Christmas, and then I stopped celebrating it and now I'm a lot better.
good for you! so glad you found a way out of the sadness.


to you celebrate 'giftsmas' as they call it? the swapping of gifts during the season? or not celebrate the winter holiday at all? just curious as to how different folks celebrate/don't celebrate.
12/21/2011
Contributor: aliceinthehole aliceinthehole
Quote:
Originally posted by (k)InkyIvy
It's sort of a mixed feeling for me. I'm really happy, because I LOVE giving people gifts (I get so excited to see how well I did at picking things out), and christmas lights give me the warm-and-fuzzies, and I like the music (though, not ... more
yes, donating definitely brings holiday cheer. that's a great way to combat the melancholy spirit of christmas.
12/21/2011
Contributor: Cherrylane Cherrylane
Sometimes I get sad about the giftyness of it all. It's easy to forget how material things don't actually make you happy and what not. And then it's like, oh wait, exactly what are we doing this for again? Why can't we just cook and visit?

This year is getting a lot sadder for me, though. I just found out that I am going to be unable to sleep with the rest of my family in the main house for some reason or another and will have to sleep all by myself in my own apartment this christmas eve and just drive over to meet the family in the morning. I think I'd rather sleep on the sofa in their living room, but w/e. )=
12/21/2011
Contributor: Selective Sensualist Selective Sensualist
Yes, I definitely understand how the season can bring forth melancholic feelings.

I personally no longer celebrate Christmas either, in the sense of gathering for gift exchanges with friends and family. My husband works retail, and we have not traveled to be with family for Thanksgiving or Christmas over the past seven years since he works both the day before and the day after these holidays. However, not traveling to see family for Christmas is fine by me. Even though I do love my parents, getting together with family at Christmas always ended with me being depressed--but that is due to the dynamics in my family and my in-law's family. I was adopted right before I started elementary school, and I've always felt like I'm on the outside looking in and don't really belong--at least not equally, despite being assured otherwise. As far as my in-laws, they have always counted drops of blood, so to speak, in determining just "how" related family members are to them, so it was clear that I was not "really" family to them at all and never really would be, no matter what. It is painful for me to observe the relationships of those around me during Christmas-time gatherings and to feel like I'm just an observer and not a partaker. There have also been some rifts in my family and in my husband's family in the past decade that have left me feeling even more alienated.

My husband and I just go out to eat on Christmas Eve and have a quiet day together on Christmas Day. We don't even do presents for each other anymore, but that is mainly because we haven't been able to afford them in recent years. We also sold our Christmas tree and gave away our lighted garlands to The Salvation Army when we moved into our smaller apartment this past summer, so we don't have Christmas decorations either.

I used to be a Christian but am now an unwilling agnostic (I say "unwilling" because my faith slipped away despite the fact that I tried desperately to cling to it).

Anyway, despite all this, I do love Christmas because the season signifies to me a hope for a better tomorrow. Hope for a better tomorrow is what motivates and drives all of humankind, no matter what their philosophy or religion may be.

Christmas is also a time for remembrances--even of darker times. These remembrances of both darker times and happier times helps us realize that life is an ongoing cycle of ups and downs. And we should never lose sight of our mountaintop experiences when we are in the valley. There is always hope of climbing back up for at least one more thrilling view of this amazing, yet fragile thing we call life.

Encouraging others who are falling into melancholy helps us keep our chins up and reminds us that there will always be hope for happier times! Since this is a time of year when so many are drifting into melancholic nostalgia, that is all the more reason to reach out to others who are going through a rough patch to give them a warm nudge of encouragement. It's hard to remain depressed when you are focused on trying to elicit a smile from and a spark of hope in a fellow human being who is also down. Just remember that we are all in this thing called life together, that we share the same vulnerabilities, that we share many more similarities than we do differences, and that we are both better and stronger by reaching out to others anytime we are feeling down.
12/21/2011
Contributor: poetprincess poetprincess
Quote:
Originally posted by aliceinthehole
was just listening to the charlie brown christmas album... why are some christmas songs so sad? they make me feel a sense of really depressing nostalgia... i'm reminded of childhood lost, the poor living winters in the cold, and soldiers away ... more
I get sad when I mainly see alot of kids being greedy and It makes me happy because my children do not ever ask for much so they always are super happy with what they get..
12/21/2011
Contributor: namelesschaos namelesschaos
Not generally but this year it is kind of sad because my father passed away in August.
12/21/2011
Contributor: namelesschaos namelesschaos
woops not sure how this double post happened sorry.
12/21/2011
Contributor: Ryuson Ryuson
I get a bit depressed due to the sun (SAD, I think it's appropriately called) and since Christmas, New Years, and Easter border the darkest season (light wise) I tend to be a bit down when they come around. I personally really enjoy getting gifts for loved ones and it helps to cheer me up, but I totally see why others would find it upsetting.
12/21/2011
Contributor: Bignuf Bignuf
Quote:
Originally posted by aliceinthehole
was just listening to the charlie brown christmas album... why are some christmas songs so sad? they make me feel a sense of really depressing nostalgia... i'm reminded of childhood lost, the poor living winters in the cold, and soldiers away ... more
I miss far away, or deceased family and friends. I miss having snow. I miss the overall joy that does not seem as pervasive around the community as it once was. Years ago, the month of December was all about folks bringing goodies to work and a lot of cheer. Now...one free meal in the cafeteria and a plastic tiny tree in our lobby. Just NOT the same...yes, a bit sad.
12/21/2011
Contributor: Hot 'N Sexy TexasMama Hot 'N Sexy TexasMama
We celebrate Christmas - sorta. But for many years my husband worked 2 days on and 2 days off in a kitchen so we learned to celebrate when we had the chance vs. on the exact day.

We haven't had a tree in years and sometimes I miss it- but not much. This year- we already have all of our presents - the kids (27 years old) got their Nook/Kindle (each one wanted a different one) - honey has his new drill and his new backpack for his computer and I have my new laptop. We opted to start using them when we bought them (with his bonus on the 16th) versus waiting for Christmas.

We will have a ham on Christmas and something nice for dessert, etc.

I like to think I celebrate Christ's birth every day of the year by trying to follow in His footsteps and being kind to others and helpful, etc.

I don't expect everyone to celebrate Christ's birth and that's ok too because I understand that He doesn't mean to them what He does to me (plus He wasn't born at this time of the year anyway).

My heart goes out to those who struggle and I even wrote an article that Eden Cafe published last week about being depressed during the holidays.
12/21/2011
Contributor: shySEXXaddict shySEXXaddict
Quote:
Originally posted by aliceinthehole
was just listening to the charlie brown christmas album... why are some christmas songs so sad? they make me feel a sense of really depressing nostalgia... i'm reminded of childhood lost, the poor living winters in the cold, and soldiers away ... more
ive always felt kinda of depressed around christmas...for many reasons.
12/21/2011
Contributor: Cookie Monster Mike Cookie Monster Mike
lots of mixed emotions during xmas. This year it does not seem like xmas or the holidays at all. I feel like it should still be a month or two away. But not being able to be with the majority of the family I love really sucks. I live in Wisconsin, they live in North Dakota and Kentucky right now Not a lot of money this year to travel
12/21/2011
Contributor: Vanille Vanille
I suffer from Seasonal Affective Disorder, so I'm pretty bummy from the time DST changes to....when it changes again. So Thanksgiving, Christmas, New Years and even Easter are hard times for me, even if I'm surrounded by the people I love.
12/21/2011
Contributor: Stephanie Majors Stephanie Majors
Quote:
Originally posted by aliceinthehole
was just listening to the charlie brown christmas album... why are some christmas songs so sad? they make me feel a sense of really depressing nostalgia... i'm reminded of childhood lost, the poor living winters in the cold, and soldiers away ... more
It's a little bit sad because I'm used to going to my grandparent's and they are no longer living so it is a reminder and also because it is sometimes hard to get people special gifts you really want to get them but are strapped for money. It can be stressful but for the most part it is a nice time of the year.
12/21/2011
Contributor: Jul!a Jul!a
I'm always pretty happy around Christmastime. I love being able to spend time with my family and friends and I love giving gifts. This year and last year were even better because I was able to get gifts for families who needed them too.
12/21/2011