It is without a doubt that December is the most festive time of year with events such as Christmas and the New Year around the corner but sometimes not everyone is in the festive spirit when times like these remind of loved ones who cannot be there. It can be confusing as it’s such a happy time of year for most people yet you feel this overwhelming feeling of grief and guilt if you feel happy at this time. It can be especially hard when a loved one passes on the day of a big event, personally when I lost my uncle on New Years Eve right in the middle of a celebration it was hard to deal with. The new year came yet the optimism I usually felt at the beginning of each New Years was gone and this continued for the next few years. The first year that I felt like having fun came with guilt and it is important to understand that one must not feel guilty when celebrating around this time of year despite the loss as you aren’t forgetting about the people who are longer with you but you are pushing forward past the feelings of grief and continuing with life. Eventually it’ll get easier dealing with loss whilst in such a festive and happy period but it’s important to embrace everything your feeling at the time even if the conflict with each other and that it’s perfectly okay to celebrate at this time of year.
