Why do some people hate Christmas?

Christmas carols are sung on a daily basis and all performances by celebrities contains some sort of Christmas jingle song. You cannot get any proper service from any institution as soon as the silly season hits. The roads are congested and people just eat and eat, and eat, all day long.

And then to crown it all, you start getting phone calls and messages from long-absent relatives, in-laws and the worst of all that one nagging friend who insists that you must have your Christmas dinner at their house. It is then when you realise “I hate Christmas”. The festive season can be emotionally crippling and terribly annoying.

According to a survey by the American Psychological Association, 38 per cent of people indicated that their stress level increases during the holidays. The reasons noted includes family gatherings, lack of money and the pressures of gift-giving are the main triggers.

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What if get-togethers are not your thing?

Everybody is familiar with the Grinch, a fictitious character, which absolutely hates Christmas and tries to end it abruptly. Dr. John Cacioppo, a neuroscience trendsetter says the green guy is like that because of his social isolation. He has become lonely and bitter in his shelter away from human interaction.

A functional magnetic resonance imaging or fMRI conducted by the doctor illustrated this concept by reflecting the results of two groups of respondents. They were subjected to images filled with positive inferences and those which showcased human conflict.

The area of the brain that recognises rewards showed the greatest response in the non-isolated subjects in comparison to those who were deprived of human interaction. Those who were lonely responded intensely to the negative images of people rather than unpleasant pictures of objects, suggesting that lonely isolated people are especially drawn to human conflict and do not mingle well with others.

According to Psychology Today’s, Prof Suzanne Deggs-White, a licensed counsellor, the following tips will get the Grinch out of you in time for Christmas:

• Attend religious ceremonies in order to experience the positive feelings of being connected and supported by others.
• Celebrate this festive season with as much enthusiasm as you can stand. Think about the joy that you have historically felt during this time and what made you happy and embrace that feeling and the activity the accompany it.
• When recovering from a broken relationship avoid all objects that can remind you of the past. Engage in activities with friends and family and remove all contact information of your ex from your phone.
• Don’t drown your sorrows with the consumption of excess amounts of alcohol. You will just end up feeling worse.
• Plan ahead of what you are going to do during the festive season in a holiday bucket list. Stick to the routine and don’t isolate yourself.

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