PegLegs and Me

  Seasonal Loneliness — When “Joyful Times” Make Depression Worse. Certain times of the year bring up emotions we’re not always prepared to handle. Christmas, New Year, birthdays, anniversaries — all the calendar moments that should feel warm and connected — can become incredibly painful for people who are isolated, grieving, financially stressed, or separated from family. For us, as a couple, all of these factors have been our experience for the last 4+ years. The pressure to be cheerful only makes it worse. Every advert, every social media post, every decorated shopping aisle screams togetherness . If your reality doesn’t look like that, the loneliness can feel suffocating. This type of seasonal depression is far more common than people admit. But for many this is not just a seasonal issue. Millions of people suffer with this debilitating condition. Depression has become one of the most common and misunderstood conditions of our time. We tend to label it as a “mental issue,”...