Tis the season to … be experiencing holiday burnout. Yep. There, I said it. I am going to get a bit real here, but I am currently dealing with a heavy dose of holiday burnout, and, it is NOT FUN. The holidays are a favorite time of year for me. I love seeing people come together to spread Christmas cheer while singing loud for all to hear (if you know that movie, you know!!!) and simply enjoy the magic of it all (regardless of if they choose to celebrate Christmas or not!). The holidays are such a beautiful time of year! And, sadly, they are also such a frequent time of year for many of us to … be experiencing holiday burnout.
I am going to be transparent with y’all: I have not had the easiest year. 2024 has been a great year for me in some ways, but it has also been a pretty tough year for me too and tougher than some years’ past I will say. I have previously mentioned this a bit over on my Instagram (let’s be friends @_thepinkchickadee) about how 2024 has not been the easiest walk in the park for me which I know many of y’all reading this now have experienced as well. And it is important to remember that in life some years are tougher than others and that is simply OKAY. Since 2024 has been pretty tough for me, I have mentally felt extremely exhausted and burned out by a lot of things going on in my life as the holiday season approaches and takes over our lives. As much as I LOVE this holiday season and adore ALLLL the Christmas things to do and ALLLL of the holiday cheer, I am also just simply tired and well burned out.
Social media IS a highlight reel folks! I will continue to share this here and over on my social media pages, too. There are real people behind every social media page being ran (well, we need to exclude the bots from this one!). But, when it comes to many of my fellow bloggers and content creators on social media, we are real people behind those screens. We are the ones out there hustling to create loads of content for y’all to be inspired by, be humored by, be informed by, or simply enjoy. Holiday season or not, we are curating content. And, most importantly, we all our human beings with lives. Our lives may look picture perfect on the outside, but day in and day out, we are simply humans with lives. Some of us have had GREAT years and some of us have had not so great years, too. Many of us may be feeling burned out this holiday season, too. Whether or not we have had a great 2024, we are all probably a little burned out.
PHEW! 2024 has been A LOT of a year for sure. However, I am striving to enjoy all of the moments that come with the holiday season and be selective in how I spend my time moving forward as Christmas is *literally* right around the corner as I write this which is literal insanity!!!
SO, with that all being said, I wanted to share a few ways that I have tried to curb some of my holiday burnout this season which have helped (Some of which I know will help YOU too!):
- Prioritizing plans with others based on professional and family obligations as well as those that are more likely to bring us an extra dose of joy
- Asking for support from loved ones and talking to them about what you’re experiencing
- Partaking in self care activities
- Being selective in doing activities (and with whom) that are going to refill our cups rather than drain them
- Seeing where tasks can be automated (e.g. using ChatGPT to generate ideas or maybe buying store bought goods over baking them)
- Doing activities that minimize screen time
- Utilizing the help of others where needed
- Removing/delaying tasks from our list that can wait for a rainy day to be completed
Above all else, if you are currently struggling with holiday burnout, just know that you are not alone this holiday season. There are SOOO many people in your shoes (me included!) who are experiencing the same exact thing as you. Remember to call or text a loved one who may be experiencing the same thing. Needless to say, experiencing holiday burnout SUCKS! None of us are alone. We are all in this together!
Happy Holidays!!!!
XOXO – Katie <3