News Release

December 5, 2005

Holiday angst hits everyone.

Canadian Mental Health Association offers tips for coping with holiday anxiety and stress, and hope for those who suffer year-round

“On, the outside I’m all Ho-Ho-Ho, but inside I feel shaky like a bowl full of jelly” — so goes a caption for a cartoon of an anxious and distressed Santa talking to a therapist. Santa’s not alone. This is the experience many people feel around the holiday season and many more live with these feelings year-round, says the Canadian Mental Health Association (CMHA). The Canadian Mental Health Association’s Givehope.ca website provides strategies for battling holiday anxiety, and an opportunity to give so that people most affected by mental illness will continue to find a place where they are not alone.

“Holiday angst hits all of us—it’s just a matter of how much and for how long it impacts our lives,” says Bev Gutray, Executive Director of CMHA’s BC Division. “A person who’s struggling to make ends meet, with few family connections or supports may feel like an outsider to the peace and joy that everyone else appears to be having,” she says, “and yet any of us who have to balance the competing demands of finances, family visits, gift-giving, work and other social engagements associated with the holiday season, are anxiety-ridden in other ways.”

The holiday season is supposed to be a time of peace, joy, and reflection, but many don’t even have the basics they need to have any semblance of mental health. For the one in five people in BC who will experience a mental illness, a holiday season spent trying to keep a roof over your head or a meal on the table is a particularly difficult time. The Canadian Mental Health Association’s online giving site, www.givehope.ca, offers people tips on how to reduce holiday stress and anxiety, and an alternative to traditional gift giving. For every $20 you donate on the secure website, you receive two gift cards you can give in lieu of a gift. You can also run a donation-matching campaign and challenge others to meet or exceed your donation.

The Canadian Mental Health Association is Canada’s oldest mental health charity, with over 50 years of service to British Columbians and part of a national network that provides service at the local, provincial and national level. CMHA in BC promotes the mental health of all British Columbians through community-based programs, education, and information and research services. We also encourage public involvement to strengthen mental health services, policy development and legislation.

CMHA’s 10 Tips for Holiday Peace of Mind

1. Plan ahead. If you’re entertaining, use the “keep it simple” strategy. Try menus you can make ahead of time or at least partially prepare and freeze. Decorate, cook, shop, or do whatever’s on your list in advance. Then you can really relax and enjoy visiting friends, relatives and coworkers.
   
   
2. As much as possible, organize and delegate. Make a list and check it twice. In many families, moms do most of the holiday preparations. Have a “family meeting” and make a commitment to care about mom’s mental health and share tasks. Rather than one person cooking the whole family meal, ask different family members or friends to bring a dish. Kids can help with gift-wrapping, decorating, baking, or addressing cards. Don’t overextend yourself with too many commitments. Focus on doing what’s really important to you and your family. If it’s hard to choose between so many fun activities, rotate outings every two or three years.
   
   
3. Beware of overindulgence. Having a few too many glasses of egg nog can dampen your holiday spirit since alcohol is a depressant. Also, too much fruitcake and too little exercise will probably make you feel lethargic, tired, and guilty come Boxing Day. Exercising as a family to work out excess energy and stress is a great activity to schedule during hectic weeks.
   
   
4. Stay within budget. Finances are a great stressor. Again, eliminate the unnecessary. Set a budget, and stay within it. A call, a visit or a note to tell someone how important they are to you can be as touching and more meaningful than a gift. You can also enjoy free activities like driving around to look at holiday decorations, going window shopping without buying, or making your own decorations.
   
   
5. Remember what the holiday season is about for you. Make that your priority. While holiday advertising creates a picture that the holidays are about shiny new toys and gift giving, remember that this season is really about sharing, loving and time spent with family and loved ones. Develop your own meaningful family traditions that don’t have to cost a lot of money.
   
   
6. Help others learn about shared social responsibility. Attend diverse cultural events with family and friends. Help out at a local food bank or another community organization. Go through closets and donate clothes and toys. Encourage children to make gifts for friends and relatives so the focus is on giving rather than buying. Give a gift to a charity like CMHA that helps those in need: see www.givehope.ca
   
   
7. Invite others. If you have few family or friends, reach out to neighbours. Find ways to spend the holidays with other people. If you’re part of a family gathering, invite someone you know is alone to your gathering.
   
   
8. Gift-giving made easier and less expensive. This holiday consider giving a charitable gift to CMHA in lieu of a donation. www.givehope.ca lets users give a gift to CMHA and be sent two gift cards which can then be given at festive occasions and throughout the holiday season. Alternatively, put family members and partners’ names in a hat and buy one gift for the person you draw; this can help reduce expenses and refocus energies on thoughtfulness, creativity and truly personal gifts. If you find that your list of gift recipients is becoming ever-growing, think of combined gifts for people who live in the same household.
   
   
9. Put fun, humour, affection, and “break time” into your holidays. Fun or silly things to do, games or movies that make you laugh, hugs, playing with pets, and time alone or with a partner are all good ways to reduce stress. Watching children can also help us put things in perspective. You can even have a bubble bath and help those who are struggling with mental health problems year-round. Escents Aromatherapy has chosen CMHA as this year's charity of choice for their December seasonal store promotion. One dollar from the sale of each Escents' bathbomb reindeer will go to support our work.
   
10. Remember the weather doesn’t help. Research suggests that elevated depression around this time of year may be more a function of the weather than celebratory burdens. Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD), or clinical depression that follows a seasonal pattern (usually worsening between October and March), is thought to affect around 2-3% of the general population. If your dampened moods carry on into the new year and seem to do so each year, you may want to consult a physician or mental health professional.

Holiday Stress Stats

• 45% of moms get no more than a few minutes a day to themselves during the holiday season. That's a 48% reduction in "me-time" from the rest of the year
  
  
• 71% of moms say the holidays are stressful. Dads and kids still don’t help out as much as they could (only 52% of dads help out, and 40% of kids)
  
  
• 35-54 year-olds are the age group having higher levels of stress during the holidays
  
  
• Income and employment are definitely in the mix. Lower income earners have higher stress levels. Nearly half (47%) of those making $15-30K say stress levels increase for them during the holidays. A 2005 Canadian survey finds that holiday stress is the highest among Canadians with past financial stresses and debt problems.
  
  
• 43% of those who are divorced or separated and 33% of widows say stress goes up for them during the holidays (see Givehope.ca for tips on coping with holiday loss or grief)
  
  
• Survey respondents who are single seem to have a slight edge over married respondents in the stress department: 37% of single respondents saytheir stress levels rise during the holidays, 40% of married respondents report more stress.

For interviews, contact: Sarah Hamid-Balma, Director of Public Education, CMHA BC Division
604-688-3234 | 1-800-555-8222 |