Christmas is said to be the most wonderful time of the year, but the reality is that life doesn’t exactly stop during the holiday season. Sometimes, life happens, and feeling the Christmas spirit becomes a pretty dire feat.
Whether the festive season snuck up on you too soon, you’re flat out broke, or you’re going through a difficult time in your life, it’s totally okay if you’re just not feeling it this year.
Truth is, if you just want to snuggle up and pretend Christmas isn’t happening at all, that’s totally okay, but if you really do miss the festive spirit and want to try your best to get there, here are a few tips to get you feeling that holiday cheer!
Tips to Feel The Holiday Spirit Even When You’re Not Feeling It
Watch your favorite Christmas movie
If all you feel like doing right now is cozying up on the couch with your favorite treats in hand, try going for your favorite Christmas movie (no matter how cheesy it is), to see if that does the trick.
Not only is re-watching movies you know the ending of a great way to beat anxiety, but the feeling of nostalgia of better times may just give you that pick-me-up feeling to get you inspired.
If you’re not sure what to watch, a few classics like How the Grinch Stole Christmas, The Polar Express, or Miracle on 34th Street are all fabulous options.
Decorate your house a little differently
Decorating the house is one of the most popular Christmas traditions out there, and if you’ve been decorating the exact same way for many years, there’s a high chance that what you need is to spice things up a bit this season to get out of your usual routine.
Be it by making an effort to go shopping for shiny new decor or trying out a few Pinterest DIY ideas, taking some time to make your house feel like Christmas is sure to get you feeling the spirit!
Get crafty with your holiday gifts
If the reason you just ain’t feeling the spirit this year is that you don’t have much money to spend on celebrating, it’s totally okay to let your loved ones know gift-giving won’t be possible this year to ease some of the stress away.
Trust me, those that really matter will completely understand.
If giving presents is important to you, though, you can take the situation as a chance to get creative.
There’s absolutely no reason to spend vast amounts of money on meaningful presents, and taking time out of your day to create a cute DIY out of things you already have at home or can find in nature is a wonderful way to make your loved ones happy.
Bake to your heart’s content
Whether you bake cookies to gift them to your loved ones or simply want to treat yourself to a few goodies, baking is a Christmas staple, and it’s a surefire way to get you feeling that spirit.
As a tip, forget all about store-bought baking this year and try to bake something completely from scratch.
In fact, we recommend playing some corny Christmas tunes and getting to work on brand new, holiday-themed recipes to add to the repertoire! (Pinterest has tons of recipe ideas!)
We know how tough Christmas can get at times, and regardless of the situation that is stopping you from feeling the holiday spirit this year, it’s important to remind yourself it’s totally okay if you’re simply not feeling it this season.
As much as we want to encourage you to try your best, please be kind to yourself and keep reminding yourself there will be more holiday season coming up over the next few years where you’ll feel a whole lot different than you do today.
