Taking a look at holiday pressure
When you’re a kid, the holidays are the most exciting and magical time of the year. Thinking about Santa coming, all the presents to rip open, and the delicious food with family would make you lose sleep! Not to mention you aren’t old enough to be responsible for anything, you just get to have fun. As an adult, however, the holidays seem to lose their charm a little bit. When you have last minute shopping to do, your bank account is almost totally drained, and there are a million events on your calendar that you need to attend, you might start to have a love-hate relationship with the holidays.
Gary H. Spielvogel via CC BY-NC-ND 2.0.
Let’s start with the malls. Now that you’re old enough to be buying gifts for people, you realize the malls become somewhat of a holiday nightmare. Crowded parking lots can bring out parking lot rage, long lines take forever, and you end up racing people to get to the last toy or sale item. In reality, it all becomes a little bit much, and that’s not to mention the financial pressure. The holidays are expensive for most people, and especially for money-strapped students. Trying to budget for the gifts you need to buy, or want to buy, for your family and friends can mean seriously cutting down for a while, or, even worse, paying off Visa bills for months after.
Then come all of the holiday gatherings. Sure, a ton of these are fun. I mean, who doesn’t love an ugly sweater party, or going home to your mom’s for some amazing home-cooked food? Usually though, it doesn’t end there. There are work parties, parties with your friends, gift exchanges, secret Santa gatherings, your dysfunctional Aunt’s house, and your boyfriend or girlfriend’s stepmother’s brother’s gathering. Considering you get time off, holidays can seem a bit like work when all is said and done. The holiday season takes up a lot of time, and your schedule is packed. Coordinating studying for exams, shopping, and fitting in time for events is a serious organizational challenge.
There is good news though, and that is the fact that the holidays can still be totally magical, minus Santa. Shop early, or skip the malls. Make online shopping your friend over the holiday season and avoid the chaos of the shops and parking lots. Also, try not to wait until Dec. 24 to start shopping. Make sure you budget early, so you don’t have last minute panic attacks when you can’t afford to finish buying your gifts. Know when to say no to a gathering so you don’t pack your schedule to the point that you can no longer enjoy yourself. Remember what the holidays are actually supposed to be about; most importantly, making time for great friends, loved ones, great memories, and heart-warming movies. Christmas Vacation anyone? Oh, and don’t forget to enjoy all the delicious treats!