Hey Pandas, How Has Your View Of The Holiday Season Changed?

Since my kids are adults now, Christmas is just another day.

I worked in retail for many years, so that experience killed my holiday spirit. Lately it has been that every year I lose someone I cared about, so Christmas is now just a time I miss those who are gone. My Mom still loves it, so I try to be happy for her, but I am always sad.

It doesn't feel magical like it used to. All of my health problems seem to be keeping me from being happy for longer periods of time. I'm out of town for Christmas and all I want to do is just go home. It makes my family sad not to see me all happy like I used to be. Christmas isn't what it used to be.

When I was a kid, I had a lot of cousins who were somewhat close to my age, and most of us lived in the same county. We spent every holiday together. I looked forward to it. I wasn't a popular kid, so my family was pretty much everything to me. That changed in my teen and young adult years, but that was temporary and I suspect typical. Then I moved to another state to be gainfully employed and became a mother. The holidays are exciting for kids, and I was proud to be able to provide for them.

Now, most of that is gone. My extended family is in several states, my cousins have their own families, and my kids are almost all grown and have everything they need. Christmas is just another day, only with expectations. I've decided to reject those expectations, including trying to make that day special somehow, especially since I don't subscribe to the religious beliefs that go along with it. I'm going to enjoy my typical weekly visit with my parents and my 4-day weekend. I'm done with the rest.

Christmas is more like "hey another year down the drain and we made it", less family and gifts.

Christmas is more like "hey another year down the drain and we made it", less family and gifts.

I haven't enjoyed Christmas since I was a young child. I always felt very stressed out by family expectations, and gifts of any kind made me feel extremely guilty, so Christmas was something to dread. But I've now been in therapy for two years, working on childhood issues, and this was the first truly peaceful and enjoyable Christmas I've had in 40 years. Usually I would spend the week after Christmas clawing my way out of a deep, dark depression, but right now I'm working on some craft projects and snuggling with my dog. I'm so grateful!

Gifts on any kind used to be fun and exciting. Now, all I feel is anxiety as I have to find a place or use for whatever is given me/us. Even food has to be eaten, sent somewhere else, or thrown away. I wish my family would listen and believe me when I say "I don't want or need anything."

Being " forgotten"or I spend 100s and they spent $5

I'm a high school student, so I still live with my parents, and this Christmas was the first holiday season in two separate households since my parents are now separated. It was really difficult waking up at one parent's house and not seeing the other until the afternoon. It didn't feel like Christmas. All the basic ideas were there, at both houses we had a tree, presents, a fireplace going, Christmas music, and any Christmas-y things you can think of, but it didn't feel any different from a normal December day. I used to veiw Christmas and the holiday season as a time for happiness and everyone coming together in spite of all the problems in the world, but having it be separated like that made it feel like the opposite. Nobody came together in spite of their differences, we weren't all together, we didn't do a lot of old traditions because they were too sad and somber. Christmas used to be one of my favorite holidays and I would start counting down to it the day after, but now, I don't think I could ever bring myself to love the holiday season again.

When we were kids we were in a church that didn’t believe in Christmas- that it was pagan and sinful. I believed it and never felt I was being cheated not having Christmas like other kids. Then I became an atheist and didn’t want anything to do with Christian anything - including Christmas. Then I became a mother and wanted my kid to have the whole Santa thing. Went all out to make sure she got the magic (not a ton of gifts, but lots of traditional activities), then the marriage ended and my almost grown child went to live with her father and I am back where I started with no Christmas.

There are Hot Cross Buns in the shops already. 🙄

Since I've been an adult, I've found Christmas depressing because it means a new year will be coming and another frickin' birthday (mine is in January). As a matter of fact, I haven't enjoyed Christmas since 1969 when my older brother stole all the money and spent it on his friends, then was afraid to come home and my aunt had to try and buy us presents!😟

Like almost everyone else here, I used to love Christmas, but nowadays everyone who made it wonderful is either dead or way across the country. There's just three of us here in the new house and my wife finally told me, after 44 years, that we could finally have a tree. She meant well, but who needs it after all that time without?

I content myself with looking forward to digitizing my many slides of Christmas past.

It’s not about getting presents anymore but it’s more important to spend time with my loved ones. Life is too short.

We were only ever allowed to sing christmas songs and church hymns. All year. My granny believed driving with music on was a distraction, listening to the radio in the house was forbidden, as well as playing cards of any type in the house (we could play those on the porch just no INSIDE the house. Something about sin in the devils house.. I dont know, granny was old, old school fundamental) so instead we sang. All day. Every chore, every task. it was the only way to entertain ourselves. I can't stand Christmas music. You can only remake Rudolf so many ways..

I have been gay since the first grade, I had a crush on my best friend. I came out to my family 7 years later, Including my dads super mormon side....It hasnt been the same since.