Spending Christmas by myself

Christmas 2020 arrived faster than any of us have imagined and, with a global pandemic taking over our plans, a lot of us are left to spend Christmas alone away from family. Usually, Christmas is a time we spend with our family, friends and loved ones, but this year it might not be the same for everyone.

If this is your first Xmas by yourself, then it might get emotional or lose the festive feel and desire to do anything. Trust me, the first Christmas I spent by myself was a month after a pretty bad breakup so... you guessed it, I spent half of the day in bed crying with a tasty bottle of wine and then decided to not let it ruin the day. The second time I spent Christmas alone, was once again after a breakup, but an amicable one which helped. While i decided i didn't want all of the decorations, but that i would enjoy the day by doing some of the things i liked and relax.

So, spending Christmas by yourself either because you chose to, because you cannot see your family or simply don't usually celebrate it, rest assured that there are plenty of things you can do.

My top recommendations for things to do on Xmas day

1) Pick one of your passions and focus on it

When we do what we enjoy, we are momentarily distracted from the situation, aka being alone. Having hobbies has been shown in various articles that has a huge positive impact on our mental health on a day to day basis, giving us the needed boost of energy, happy thoughts and clear mind. It gives our brain a break from overdrive aka overthinking, which i am sooo guilty of and gives us something to focus on.

Now it can be different for everyone. For me, its festive cartoons and wine. Might sound boring for a lot of people, but cartoons always bring me back to my childhood and I know for a fact that i will be laughing the entire time. If u are asking why cartoons and not movies, well i find lately that i have seen most good films on Netflix and I have seen quite a few of them in the run up to Christmas. Wine, well that's a no brainer - adult life haha - so always like to have a bottle and slowly drink it through the evening.

Kind reminder, that works for me, so what works for you? If you don't know yet, here are some options for you: reading a book, going for a walk, painting, writing, puzzles, games etc.

2) Connecting virtually

Just because you are alone, doesn't mean you're lonely. Message your friends, video chat your family. It might not be the same as face to face, but it will help ease the loneliness feel. And the best part about going digital and virtual, is that you can also join online discussions and events. Most of 2020 we have switched to doing things virtually, and while it comes with implicit negative effects, i also need to highlight the positive ones. There are so many charities, organizations and individuals that are just like you and me and you can join their virtual events, streams etc.

3) Social Media

Don't. Just don't spend to much time on it. Seeing your feed packed with photos of your friends with their family or relatives, the Christmas happy family portrait can lead to sadness. Scrolling through my Instagram feed made me compare my life, my actions my day to everyone else's. And while i know that is not good for my mental health, it was hard to not pick my phone and scroll again or with every call or message to open the social media apps and check them and there it went - an hour wasted.

Of course, don't feel the pressure of needing to celebrate it. It is ok not to if you don't feel it. It might make things easier if you don't add the pressure. See what you are comfortable with. And remember that, if you ever need to spend Christmas alone, you are not lonely and that you decide each moment of your day so you can turn your day around.