holidays bergen county nj

Grief: Grieving Around the Holidays

GalleryJudy Gurfein Leave a comment

Grief: Grieving Around the Holidays

By Emily Ferrer

As the weather gets colder, the colorful leaves fall off the trees, and the holiday decorations start to light up the night, the feeling of the best time of the year starts to kick in. As merry and cozy as these holidays seem to be, they do not always have the same effect on everyone. Grieving around the holidays can feel extremely lonely, sad, and overwhelming. The first holiday season is always the hardest for individuals and families who have just lost someone close to them, such as a grandparent, parent, sibling, child, or other close relative that they would usually see during the holidays. The empty chair at the dining table during Thanksgiving, or the wonder of who is going to make the Christmas cookies this year can be extremely heartbreaking. Even after you feel as if you have started to feel better through your grieving process, the holidays can dig up more emotion than you have felt since losing your loved one. You may start to feel more down, tired, unmotivated, sluggish, and lonely. You may also start to get flashbacks of your loved one when they passed that may also make you feel as if you are grieving from the beginning all over again. As hard as the holiday season may be for grieving individuals and families, here are some tips to help make your holiday season a bit brighter this year[1]:

  • Surround yourself with people you love and care about. Being with a big group of people during the holidays after losing a loved one can help you feel less lonely and can also be a great opportunity to share stories about your loved one with your family.
  • Do not “cancel” the holiday. As tempting as it may be to forget about the holidays after losing your loved one it is important to keep it going and grieve along the way. Experiencing the holiday season after the death of a loved one is part of the grieving process from which you should not run away.
  • Create new traditions. Finding new traditions can also be a create way to cope during the holiday season. This can include changing the location of where holiday dinner is hosted, picking new family members to carve the turkey or make the Christmas cookies, or even coming up with a new holiday game to play to fill the emptiness that everyone may feel.
  • Practice self-care. Try not to indulge in alcohol or drugs during the holiday season to cope with your grief; instead, try journaling, spending time with friends, or physical activity to boost your mood. It is also important to let yourself feel any emotions that arise and to not fight the conflicting feelings of anger, sadness, joy, and happiness.
  • Seek professional help. It is important to be aware of your feelings during such a difficult time and recognize that if the holiday season is too much for you to handle to seek professional help to assist you during this challenging period.

If you or someone you know is struggling with grief this holiday season and wants help, please contact our psychotherapy offices in New York or New Jersey to talk to one of our licensed professional psychologists, psychiatrists, psychiatric nurse practitioners, or psychotherapists at Arista Counseling & Psychotherapy. Contact our Paramus, NJ or Manhattan, NY offices respectively at (201) 368-3700 or (212) 722-1920 to set up an appointment. For more information, please visit https://www.counselingpsychotherapynjny.com

Sources:

[1] https://www.vitas.com/family-and-caregiver-support/grief-and-bereavement/holidays-and-grief/coping-with-grief-during-the-holidays

Managing Eating Disorders during the Holidays

GalleryJudy Gurfein Leave a comment
Managing Eating Disorders during the Holidays

By: Suzanne Zaugg

Holidays are a described as being, “the most wonderful time of year” filled with joy and love, it is a time when families to come together. Most, people are gathered around in the season of giving celebrating their holiday cheer, while, people with mental health issues, struggle more throughout the holiday season. According to the American Psychological Association, 38% of people tend to feel their stress increase during the holiday season, which can lead to physical and mental health disorders, such as eating disorders. Signs of an eating disorder include feeling stressed around food, fearful of weight gain, guilt after eating, and missing events that are food focused. These signs tend to increase through the holiday season, so it is important to keep an eye out if you or a loved one start to experience these or similar symptoms. Learning ways to manage relationships with food is a great way to feel better through the holidays, for those who have eating disorders.

Strategies to get through the holiday season:

  1. Show self-compassion. Give yourself compassion through the difficult holiday season.
  2. Ask for help. Find a family member or friend as a support person during meal times.
  3. Have a holiday coping plan. Plan out your “fear” foods (ones that make you feel stressed and anxious) and favorite foods, and then give yourself permission to eat them.
  4. Remind yourself that food provides nutrient value. Holiday foods connect us with culture, heritage, loved ones and traditions. Holiday foods are not considered “unhealthy”.
  5. Give yourself permission to feel satisfaction from eating.
  6. Set healthy boundaries. Choosing not to engage in diet talk or leaving a family function early are important ways to manage food anxiety.
  7. Practice self-care. Whether it is cuddling your pet, connecting with loved ones, or just taking time for yourself. Self-care is beneficial to your overall health.
  8. Take one day at a time. Make short term goals, which are easier to achieve and which will boost your overall mood, in order to make the most of gathering with loved ones.

By learning to understand and recognize the signs of an eating disorder, you can help the people in your life who are struggling.

If you or someone you know is seeking therapy for an eating disorder, please contact our psychotherapy offices in New York and New Jersey to talk to one of our licensed professional psychologists, psychiatrists, psychiatric nurse practitioners, or psychotherapists at Arista Counseling & Psychotherapy. Contact our Paramus, NJ or Manhattan, NY offices respectively, at (201) 368-3700 or (212) 722-1920 to set up an appointment. For more information, please visit http://www.counselingpsychotherapynjny.com/

Source:

https://news.llu.edu/health-wellness/tips-and-tools-for-handling-eating-disorders-around-holidays