Description
‘Tis the Season to be Jolly? Anxiety and Depression over the Holidays
Thursday, December 5, 2024
6:00 – 8:00 PM ET
Webinar Presenter
Dr. Greg Jantz, Founder of The Center, A Place of HOPE in Edmonds, WA. He is a go-to media expert for mental health, and drug and alcohol addictions. He is a regular contributor to The Huffington Post and Psychology Today.
Summary
According to a 2023 poll by the American Psychological Association, nearly nine in ten U.S. adults felt overwhelmed by the holidays (89%), citing stressors such as “not having enough money, missing loved ones and anticipating family conflict.”[i] And, National Alliance on Mental Health research has shown almost two-thirds of those already struggling “feel their mental health is negatively impacted by the holidays.”[ii] A CDC study likewise found an increase in depressive symptoms among 64% of those with a pre-existing mental health condition.[iii]
Whatever happened to the world where Andy Williams could sing with a straight face, It’s the most wonderful time of the year? We now live in a time when the holidays have become synonymous with anxiety and stress, with 43% of survey respondents admitting the stress of the holidays “interferes with their ability to enjoy them.”[iv]
This webinar will explore the current state of our stressed-out holidays, who is most vulnerable to the anxiety and depression distressingly prevalent during this time of the year, what are the most common trigger points, and, most importantly, what can be done to help lower the boiling point (not just for the mulled cider) for the holiday season itself.
Learning Objectives:
Participants will:
1. Identify the role of expectations, realistic and unrealistic, in contributing to holiday anxiety and depression.
2. Incorporate practical strategies for navigating holiday family challenges into individual treatment planning for anxiety and depression.
3. Actively reframe the holidays from an overwhelming, negative, experience through a positive, whole-person, perspective with measurable goals and individualized outcomes for anxiety and depression.
[iv] Ibid.
