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Got The Post-Holiday Blues? Here's How To Beat 'Em

Post Holidays

The Huffington Post   Catherine Pearson First Posted: 01/03/12 08:42 AM ET Updated: 01/04/12 06:02 PM ET

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Wait ... hear that? That's our collective sigh marking the fact that the great holiday season of 2011 has finally come to a close.

And while for many of us, that is indeed a relief -- there's no more cooking, no more cleaning, no more forced New Year's revelry -- the post-holiday period can represent a real time of sadness and readjustment, too.

Each of us has our own personal blend of apres-holidays feelings, but there are many issues and emotions that crop up again, and again and again. So we went to a team of experts to ask for some advice on what you can do -- right now -- to help beat those post-holiday blues.

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First thing's first: When it comes to getting back to "normal" after the holidays, remember that you are not a robot.

"After the holidays, people have this expectation that because they're supposed to be back at work, that everything is going to be normal," said Dr. Amanda Itzkoff, an assistant clinical professor of psychiatry at Mount Sinai Hospital in New York. "We're not machines. We don't have a button that we can just push that says 'it's over.'"

The first step, is just knowing that's a real possibility. Whether it's sadness over lingering family issues, or stress about the money you just spent, you might not feel like your typical self simply because the calendar says it's time, Itzkoff said, and that is perfectly okay. Give yourself a pass for a few days and don't feel annoyed or pressured if you don't feel 100 percent immediately. You're more likely to get back there sooner if you are patient with yourself.
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Wait ... hear that? That's our collective sigh marking the fact that the great holiday season of 2011 has finally come to a close. And while for many of us, that is indeed a relief -- there's no mo...
Wait ... hear that? That's our collective sigh marking the fact that the great holiday season of 2011 has finally come to a close. And while for many of us, that is indeed a relief -- there's no mo...
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sheilamhc
0 Fans
07:45 PM on 01/07/2013
This is a great article! Post holiday blues affect many people. Sometimes, people feel more depressed in the winter, and the end of the holiday season contributes even more to those feelings.
As as counselor (www.mytherapist.info/Sheila), I appreciate this article because it normalizes the feelings of sadness that many experience after the holidays. As the article states, if you feel that you cannot handle the "post holiday blues" yourself, it may be best to find someone to speak with about your feelings, and find some ways of making yourself feel better.
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sheilamhc
0 Fans
07:38 PM on 01/07/2013
This is a great article!! The post holiday blues affect many people, and this article normalizes a common experience. As a counselor (www.mytherapist.info/Sheila), I agree with all the suggestions to help alleviate post holiday blues. As the article states, if you find that you are unable to deal with blue feelings on your own, you may want to find someone that you can speak with that will assist you in banishing those blues.
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merlinspinoza
75 Fans
12:57 AM on 01/04/2012
the prefrontal cortex in the brain needs a holiday; unless the prefrontal cortex is liberated from stress it goes offline an dleaves us with the animal brain

holiday for the PFC means meditate ideally using the TM technique

in general spend less spend less spend less and enjoy more ; give the gift of less pollution ; of the 489 BILLION dollars americans have spend on christmas probably half is pollution or waste sooner or later; even if its only excess it isnt helping normality ; a little suggestion made by a neuroscientist might help : happy hour like the happy meal , is not ; alcohol turns the prefrontal cortex off eh voila problems seem to vanish then after christmass problems havnt vanished much and now the brain is less able to deal with them because of the downstreams of alcohol on body/mind/brain
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samuraifrog37
Chicago Uptown
200 Fans
12:05 AM on 01/04/2012
Yes; holidays are over and now I don't have to cook or clean my house for another year. Anybody with post holiday blues has a few issues. Collective sigh....NOT.
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