And how to cope.
I decorate obsessively, and I start planning gifts well before Halloween.
My family and I celebrate Christmas.
But on Christmas morning, I woke up feeling depressed.
After weeks of planning and anticipating the holiday, it felt like everything was over in a nanosecond.
After all of that effort, I’d call it a less-than-average day.
Stocksy / Design by Tiana Crispino
And yet, a whole year later, I find myself in the exact same position.
So a la Carrie Bradshaw, I can’t help but wonder:why.
To investigate just that, I turned to psychologists Dr. Sanam Hafeez and Dr. Jenny Yip.
Stocksy / Design by Tiana Crispino
“Planning for the holidays gives people a goal and meaning,” adds Yip.
It also triggers a release of dopamine, the hormone associated with reward-based pleasure.
Hafeez cites one 2017 study that looked at 40 participants' brains during an MRI scan.
Stocksy / Design by Tiana Crispino
According to Yip, it’s all about setting expectations.
“We have a lot of expectations,” she explains.
“Its like traveling, right?
Whenever we travel, we keep our fingers crossed that everything goes smoothly as planned,” she says.
“But theres always something thats bound to go wrong, which can lead to disappointment.
Its always useful to have a plan, but you also have to be flexible about your plan.”
Yip notes that the best way to combat these feelings of letdown is to practice flexibility.
Book holiday activities youlovein advance so you have a specific date and time to look forward to.
Last year, I booked a cozy cabin stay in the Catskills for the week after New Year’s.
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