Let’s see why this discomfort triggers emotions such as anxiety, melancholy and sadness
Pure hermit, hater of Christmas. The Grincha character born from the pen of Dr. Seuss, is used to identify a syndrome which, according to a survey conducted in 2022 by MioDottore, it affects 58% of Italians.
Grinch syndrome reflects emotional distress
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Anxiety, melancholy and sadness are the main symptoms of Grinch syndrome. An inconvenience that can lead to stress, insomnia and tiredness. These are the percentages of the survey: the 78% of Italians he declares himself more stressed during the holidays; 39% believe that Christmas stress is linked to their own experiences and the dynamics within their family sphere; 36% explains Christmas stress with the dysfunctionality of family relationships; a 39% points the finger at too many work commitments which add to the organizational overload of the parties. Let’s go back, however, to talk about the emotions that characterize this syndrome: anxiety, meloncholy And sadness. The psychotherapist explains it to her Rita Lombardi: “The typical melancholy of Christmas is often also present in other moments of the year during which we stop and be with ourselves, such as the weekend, on our birthday and other holidays. In these days, where everything stops, we are led to ask ourselves questions and reflect on our lives, our choices, our relationships. And so we feel a physiological sadness linked to the passing of time, to the things not done, to those in the past, to those that are yet to come. We see ourselves with a more critical eye by comparing our lives with those of others.”
Christmas and family
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A 2015 research conducted byUniversity of Copenhagen and published on British Medical Journal analyzed, through functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI), the brain response of 10 subjects who loved Christmas and 10 who, instead, rejected it. The 20 subjects were subjected to Christmas-themed images, interspersed with neutral ones. Well, the Christmas-loving subjects, upon viewing the Christmas images, activated what in scientific jargon were defined as areas linked to Christmas spirit networktogether with an increased heart rate. No activation, however, for the 10 who had not developed positive Christmas traditions. Second Jessica Ebenstein Grose, American journalist, editor and writer who writes on the New York Times, we can talk about “festive regression”. In particular, in his article, entitled Your mother is bound to annoy you. How to handle the inevitable holiday regressionGrose points the finger at the dynamics of the family system that remain intact over time. He argues that whatever our “pre-established role” may have been in the past, we will find ourselves reliving it at any age once we cross the threshold of our home. Especially at Christmas. “Sometimes – explains Rita Lombardi – we don’t hate Christmas but what it reminds us ofwhat we feel we have to do out of obligation, such as gifts, dinners, parties, meeting relatives or people we don’t like and being forced to submit to traditions that we don’t like. In most cases, what irritates us most is feeling obliged to also be happy, or at least pretend to be happy, just because it’s Christmas.”
how to counter the grinch syndrome
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The bouquet of advice he starts with a straight leg: “Let’s try to understand what really makes us suffer and let’s also learn to say no”. The expert then points the finger at the recognition of one’s emotions. “It is very important to welcome them and listen to feelings, trying to understand where they originate.” Only in this way, according to the psychotherapist, can we get closer to our own authenticity: “We give our meaning to the holidays. New habits and new traditions, to carry on with the people we choose to have next to us. The biggest challenge is that of be honest with our feelings and then carry out some actions that make us feel good, respecting everyone”.
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