Why some of us get sadder and melancholy at the end of the year

For some people this time of year with celebrations and gatherings can be a melancholy period. There’s even an English term for it — “holiday blues”.

It is not a diagnosis, nor a technical term, but it is relatively common. The blues means melancholy, the person can be sadder, anxious and with a feeling of discomfort, especially with the arrival of the end of year festivities.

Unlike depression and other disorders, there is no loss of functionality in this condition. However, some external situations can enhance these feelings and make the individual feel something different compared to the other months of the year.

“It can be caused by a grieving that has not yet been resolved, financial concerns, the need to find enemies in family events, a history of previous conflicts in these periods, even if it is not the focus of this one, but ends up witnessing others”, explains Marcelo Daudt von der Heyde , psychiatrist, professor at the School of Medicine of the Pontifical Catholic University of Paraná (PUC-PR).

As it is something seasonal, it can pass after these more festive seasons. However, it deserves attention when it extends to living with family members and starts to interfere in everyday life.

There are still those who do not like to celebrate certain dates simply because they do not like certain standards imposed by society and this must also be respected.

“There are people who are a little averse to this social determination. There are people who are more introverted and who are not so influenced by what is happening around them. Generally, they are more averse in general”, highlights Valéria Tinoco, psychologist and specialist in Mourning at the Institute of Psychology 4 Seasons, in São Paulo.

Melancholy is “normal”

Although it doesn’t reach everyone, the feeling of melancholy can occur at this time of year and has to do with the end of cycles.

This is mainly due to the difficulty faced when experiencing ends and finishing something pending. “People think that another year has arrived and they haven’t achieved what they wanted and they have that feeling that it is no longer possible to do something. Another year has passed”, says Tinoco.

According to the expert, the feeling is also quite common on birthdays, which bring the idea of ​​past time and approaching death.

Rafaela Cardoso de Mattos, a psychologist at Vibe Saúde and with a graduate degree from the Hospital das Clínicas of the Faculty of Medicine of Ribeirão Preto (HCFMRP-USP), also draws attention to the labor relations that enhance these feelings in the last month.

“There is an overload of many conclusions and deadlines at work. We also noticed that we did not reach the goals that we had stipulated at the beginning”, he says.

Grief and trauma increase this feeling

Feelings of melancholy and sadness can be intensified if an individual is grieving. Generally, commemorative dates are triggers and, consequently, can make people more emotional.

“Today we no longer think of a suitable time for mourning to be resolved, people who have been well for many years may have memories, they are momentarily sadder and with a more nostalgic and time-limited aspect”, says Heyde.

People who during childhood and adolescence were in more conflictual environments are more likely to get holiday blues, even if they are just a bystander to the conflict.

This is brought about by the conditioning that happens naturally in our psychic processes and by having traumatic memories from previous years.

In this way, getting together, exchanging gifts and celebrating can bring even more suffering.

Depressed people are more exposed

Those who suffer from depression tend to have more difficulty in keeping up with meetings and celebrations, especially in December.

Talking about personal life, having to deal with and making resolutions can worsen the condition of those who are undergoing treatment or even do not have symptoms of the disease in recent years.

“Those with depression have a much greater tendency to give negative meanings to events, and therefore have an increased chance of having holiday blues, as well as having a worsening of the depressive condition. In this case, in addition to the discomfort, there is a loss of functionality in general and the suffering is much greater”, says the psychiatrist.

In mood disorders, especially persistent depression and bipolar disorder, seasonality is common. In the northern hemisphere, this is amplified by the reduction in luminosity, due to the fact that these dates are at the height of winter, which causes seasonal depression.

However, seasonality is not restricted to this aspect, both for biological and biographical reasons, points out the PUC Paraná psychiatrist.

An individual who has depression can also present a worsening of the picture at the end of the year for not being able to have fun in those moments, a phenomenon known as anhedonia.

He may also have a tendency to have negative memories from previous years or simply feel sad with no apparent trigger.

Covid potentialized a feeling of sadness

Three years after the first cases of covid-19 in the world, there are still many people who tend to feel sadder due to the consequences of the disease.

The infection caused an increase in mortality and impaired the farewell ritual before and after the death of a loved one, increasing the rate of lasting grief. Because of the isolation, the support network that would usually support those who lost someone close to them was also limited.

In a way, memories linked to the disease increase people’s melancholy, since many will not celebrate with family members or were, precisely, going through a delicate moment in the previous year.

“It was a very stressful moment. It also makes people more loaded, more depressed and have no reason to celebrate. There are people who were affected and who may still be suffering the losses and grief during this period”, he says. Tinoco.

How to treat?

Even though it is not considered a disease, this year-end sadness can be treated and deserves attention. When feelings begin to interfere with routine and harm people around them, follow-up with health professionals such as psychotherapists is recommended.

If there is impairment of functionality or the feelings are more serious, it is necessary to assess whether you have a depressive condition, which requires a clinical approach, and some medication may be used.

In relation to “pure” holiday blues, the work is more about seeking different meanings for these events, creating coping strategies to vent negative feelings and avoid unhealthy compensatory behaviors, such as substance abuse or social isolation.