Ring in the CHANGES

SWITCHING UP YOUR FESTIVE TRADITION MAY BE THE TICKET TO A CHEERIER CELEBRATION

Change is never easy and there’s something about Christmas that makes coping with life’s big transitions even harder. Partly, it’s because tradition dominates so much of how we celebrate the holiday. Even families that aren’t sticklers for tradition have lots of little things they do ‘just so’ at this time of year.

From who is on your guest list and what you eat, to when you unwrap the presents, who does the cooking and whether the Queen’s message features in the proceedings, most families follow strict patterns and protocol at Christmas, often passed down from one generation to another.

Yet holding on to tradition, especially when family dynamics change, can sometimes lead to more stress. And stress is the one thing no-one needs more of at this time of year.

THE RIGHT & WRONG

One of the reasons so many of us stick to the routines of the past is they are reassuringly familiar, and often fairly easy to do. If we try something new, there is a chance that things might not quite go to plan, but Linda advises us to embrace that risk. “Our most fondly remembered Christmases are actually the ones where things go wrong,” she says. “No one remembers the amazing stuffing you made from scratch six years ago, whereas we all remember the year Grandma burnt the turkey and everyone had peanut butter sandwiches for lunch on Christmas Day.”