Mental Health – Page 2 – My Simple Mind

Thank you to @TheGoodTheHuma1 for tagging me in this fun festive challenge!

I really enjoyed doing this, and hope the people I tagged will do too! An for anyone reading this, I hope you get to learn a little about me : )

Christmas Tag

Do you prefer giving or receiving gifts
Giving – Don’t get me wrong, of course I enjoy and appreciate receiving gifts, but I LOVE to spoil my family!
Do you make and stick to New Year’s resolutions?
No – I generally find it puts too much pressure on yourself. In honesty, I always strive to better myself. I ask people for feedback in my professional life, and I know the things in life I need to do generally so try and do these all year round. I am not a massive New Year fan, though I do get sentimental and look back on the year that I have had.
Have you ever made a snowman?
Oh yes!! I have pictures from my childhood of my brother and I building a snowman, something guaranteed to be done whenever it snowed! (As well as snow ball fights!) I did try building one as an adult, but I think you become more aware of the cold and damp of the snow as an adult, and everything becomes more about practicality!
Is your Christmas tree real or fake, and what theme do you prefer?
Every year since my childhood, we have always had a real tree – it is part of annual tradition, going and picking the tree. It also became a tradition me and my husband had each year, though this year he has convinced me to buy an artificial tree. My theme is traditional red, gold and green, and I don’t really do tinsel! I love lots of lights and have to have them on the twinkly setting!
Most memorable holiday moment?
As a child, my most memorable moment was probably a moment, which is still mentioned now… the lounge door was opened and in my disbelief at so many gifts I just said “…alllll themmm presssents”. I was only really small at the time but we still laugh and say it now whenever we have all the presents under the tree! To me, it reflects how lucky we are to have been fortunate enough to be spoilt materially, but also in the fact that we have shared Christmas memories as a family year in year out!
What holiday traditions are you looking forward to this year?
We have a couple of traditions… one being exchanging family cards on Christmas Eve (no presents are exchanged until Christmas Day). I also love settling down and watching The Muppet Christmas Carol with my husband on Christmas Eve which has become a bit of a tradition, but only once everything is sorted ready for Christmas Day!
What is the best Christmas present you have ever received?
There are so many gifts I have received, it is so difficult! One of the nicest gifts of recent years was an electric piano from my husband. He knows I have always wanted to learn piano, and had bought me piano lessons for a previous Christmas. His hope was that I would get back into it because I had dropped my lessons due to other things going on in my life. I really do need to get back into it! A lovely story of a beautiful Christmas gift can also be found here.
What are your favourite holiday foods?
Wow… Christmas involves so much food doesn’t it?! I would say pigs in blankets is one of my favourites! Also, my mum does Brussel sprouts with chestnuts, which is really nice and the only time of year we have them together like that.
What is your favourite Christmas film?
The Muppet Christmas Carol! You can read about why I think that, and some of my other favourite Christmas movies here.
What is your favourite Christmas song?
Over the years it does tend to change, but the last couple of years I am really into ‘Jingle Bell Rock’. I think this is because it isn’t one I used to hear as much. I have to say I do love ‘All I want for Christmas is You’, and I do love some carols.
What is your favourite thing about Christmas?

I don’t want to spoil anything here because I have a Christmas blog post coming up, so I will link it once it is published!

What would be your dream place to visit at Christmas time?
For me, I think Christmas is best spent at home with family. It is how it has always been and I enjoy a traditional Christmas at home with the people I love. That said, I would love to go to New York in the run up to Christmas to do shopping, though my anxiety would certainly set me back from doing that as how it is at the moment.
Who do you spend Christmas with?
On Christmas morning it is just me, my husband and our 2 cats (our furbabies). We open our presents (furbabies included), and then we get dressed and ready for the day ahead.

We go visit my Mother In Law, her husband, & my Brothers in Law. We all have a mass opening of presents, and it is also my Mother In Law’s husband’s birthday so we do his birthday present. We don’t have Christmas dinner with his them, we have New Year’s Dinner on New Year’s Day with them instead.

After that it is normally afternoon, and we head over to my mum’s for Christmas dinner. There we have dinner and more present opening with my mum, dad, brother and Grandma, where we pretty much stay for the remainder of the day. My parents live ridiculously close to us so it is really easy for getting home in the evening, where we spend what is left of the night lazing in the lounge with the cats and each other!

When do you start getting excited about Christmas?
On and off for months I guess. I started buying Christmas presents in May and felt pretty organised, but I feel excited on and off because I love Christmas, but in honesty I guess I do put a lot of pressure on myself when it comes to shopping and wrapping etc. I always want the gifts to reflect the thought I have put in and the wrapping to show I have taken care and time to wrap it.
You have one Christmas wish – what will it be?
This is so hard, because as an adult, we just want basic things don’t we – for us and our loved ones to be happy and healthy. Something I always wish at New Year for everyone is Health, Wealth & Happiness, so I guess that would be my Christmas wish.

I would love to know what anyone thinks of the answers and for anyone I didn’t tag, please feel free to comment answering any of the questions yourself!

My tags are:

@CrazyQdilla

@the_rolling_20s

@lifeasjst_nikki

Love it or hate it, you certainly can’t avoid it! Christmas takes over for the entirety of December, and it feels like it gets earlier and earlier every year.

Some people are huge Christmas fans and love going ‘all out’, but for others, Christmas isn’t the greatest time of year.

Sometimes it isn’t just about being a ‘Grinch’ or a ‘party pooper’, there are people who struggle at this time of year for a variety of reasons – maybe due to their current circumstances, or previous trauma they have experienced etc.

I asked my Twitter followers whether they love it or hate it, and here are some of the things a few of them had to say…

Christmas fence.png

How do you feel about Christmas?

“I really dislike Christmas, I get very anxious in the run up to Christmas.”

“I absolutely love Christmas! It feels so magical and cosy. I’ve been known in two previous jobs as the Christmas fairy, so I’ve always been in charge of decorating at work because they know that I love it so much.”

“As long as I can remember, I have had a love/ hate relationship with Christmas. I suffer from depression, anxiety, and PTSD brought on by child sexual violence. Half the time I have to force myself to enjoy the traditions. Since having children I find myself loving the holiday more for them. I don’t want them to feel as I do.”

What do you think of shops playing Christmas music in November?

“Annoying and a ploy to attempt to get people to spend more money.”

“As much as I enjoy Christmas music, I’d prefer that they wait until the day after Thanksgiving.”

“I honestly can’t stand it. It makes me anxious. It reminds me Christmas will be here soon and there’s so much to do. It puts me in panic mode.”

Do you decorate for Christmas?

“When I was living at home I used to decorate for Christmas but last Christmas and this one I have been living in a hostel and I haven’t made such an effort”

“Yes, we go pretty crazy. During the Christmas season, there are virtually no untouched horizontal or vertical surfaces in our home. We put together a very intricate “holiday village” in our living room that takes a couple of days. I love it; it’s like a little virtual world. And it’s great to see granddaughter’s eyes light up when she sees it every year. She just can’t touch it!”

“A little, I did more when the kids were younger but now just the basics. This year I won’t even have a tree as I have a puppy and it could be carnage”

What is one thing you like about Christmas?

“I like a bit of time with my family”

“Being with all three of our adult kids and getting to relax and just enjoy time with them – and seeing them have fun hang out with each other.”

“Seeing other people happy and little kids having fun is cute. Other than that, not much really.”

What is one thing you dislike about Christmas?

“The whole artificiality of it and the negative effect it has on a lot of people. More suicides around the festive period than any other time of year.”

“The idea that there are people who are lonely and sad.”

“Not having family around like I use to. Everyone has grown up or passed and it’s hard to be together. Also, I can’t enjoy it no matter what and that kills me.”

What kind of Christmas did you have as a child?

“I had some weird Christmases growing up, quite a few spent in hospital due to health issues then when I got better every other Christmas was spent with either mum or dad”

“Christmas was amazing when I was a kid. My muma and dad would help me leave out milk and mince pies for Santa, and some carrots for the reindeer. The next morning there would be an almost empty glass, some mince pie crumbs, and a carrot top with bite marks on the bottom of it. I had a huge stocking that got filled by Santa, and then presents from friends and family under the tree. I used to get so many presents that I couldn’t open them all in one day. I’m an only child, so my parents used to make Christmas all about me. Santa still brings me and my dad presents every year.”

“My parents were divorced, so I spent most of them with my mom. After my molestation I spent a few big holidays with my grandparents. Unfortunately , the trauma has erased much of my childhood.”

What does your typical Christmas day look like?

”Same as every other day.”

“Christmas Day is always at my auntie’s house. I spend the morning opening the presents under the tree at my house, and then we get ready and go to my auntie’s house. We have a big family dinner, open all the presents at their house together, and then relax in the evening watching Christmas TV. Boxing Day has always been special in my house though. That’s when we do Christmas all over again for just us, and it’s a lot more chill. We stay in our pjs, watch whatever we want on TV, and have a whole second Christmas dinner!”

“Get up, stay smelly, eat chocolate – go to bed lol”

What would you say to someone who has the opposite view as you on Christmas?

“I would say it’s their opinion and I’m glad they have better experiences than me”

“I’d say to each his own, if you like it fair play but to me it’s just another day.”

“I think it’s sad that people have unpleasant memories of Christmas, and I feel lucky to have great ones. I’d say make the time to volunteer for an hour or two somewhere over the holidays – it really takes you “out of yourself” and reminds you to be grateful for what you have.”

“You do you. Everyone is different, and they can celebrate it (or not celebrate it) however they wish. One of my best friends doesn’t do Christmas in their house. They used to when she was a kid, but thanks to family drama every year they decided to stop celebrating it. Now their tradition is to get takeaway and watch rubbish TV in their pjs. Don’t ruin it for those that love it if you don’t like Christmas, and don’t shove your love for it in other people’s faces if you do love it!”

“Everyone has different views on Christmas, for different reasons. We all have the right to our own feelings and views.”

“That is fine, we all have our own experiences. I am not a bah humbug and know that a lot of my issue is circumstance rather than the actual holiday itself.”

Please respect that everyone is entitled to an opinion and that the world is full of so many unique people. Unfortunately you are never going to agree with every single person, and every single person isn’t going to agree with your opinion.
If everyone had the same ideas, thoughts & opinions then nothing would change for the worse, but it wouldn’t change for the better either.

Thank you so much to those who participated in this post… you can check them out and give them a follow, and check their blogs out using the details below:

@CynthiaMGill5

@A_Strongerme_

@dawnerichards Blog Link

@IntroducingMMI Blog Link

@365days_051215 Blog Link

Thanks also to the person who answered anonymously