Beat the holiday blues and stress

BATON ROUGE, La. (WAFB) - Holiday Blues and stress are never fun, but there are ways folks can manage them.

The holiday season can come with challenges. For some, it’s stressing over which gift to buy, while others may have a hard time celebrating the season without a loved one this year.

“The tradition of the holiday blues is a legitimate disease process that can be overlooked, and we just assume, and we don’t need to suffer with those,” says Dr. John Rodriguez, who is the chief medical director of Healthcare 2U.

Dr. Rodriguez says it’s normal to experience anxiety or even depression during the winter months. He says a lot of patients may have seasonal affective disorder. Doctors say when the weather changes, it can affect one’s mood.

“Talking to your primary care physician if it’s really something you can’t overcome. A primary care physician treats a majority of seasonal affective disorder conditions in terms of either counseling, directing you to therapy, or medication if need be,” adds Rodriguez.

Rodriguez says staying active in the community or engaging with loved ones can also help keep one’s spirits up. However, when it comes to stress during the holidays, he says it’s always best to plan ahead.

“I think preparation is the key. Knowing that I struggle this time of year, what can I do to reduce my stress, and I think one of those things too is the gift-giving side. How to reduce the financial part,” explains Rodriguez.

Rodriguez urges people who may experience these symptoms to get their shopping done ahead of time and set a budget on how much they are going to spend.

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