A Clinical Perspective on Holiday Seasonal Depression

From a clinical standpoint, seasonal depression during the holidays is rarely just about the season itself. While reduced daylight, colder weather, and disrupted routines can impact mood and energy, what often brings people into counseling during this time is the emotional weight the holidays carry.

The holiday season tends to activate memory, meaning, and expectation all at once. For many individuals, it highlights losses—of people, roles, routines, or identities—that may have felt manageable earlier in the year but become more pronounced in November and December. Even positive traditions can evoke grief when they no longer look the way they once did. Clinically, this is often understood as ambiguous loss: something meaningful has changed, yet there is no clear or socially recognized space to grieve it.

From a nervous system perspective, the holidays can also keep people in prolonged states of activation. Increased social obligations, family dynamics

, financial strain, and pressure to “show up” emotionally can overwhelm the body’s capacity to regulate stress. Over time, this can result in irritability, emotional numbness, sleep disruption, fatigue, or withdrawal—symptoms that closely resemble depression.

Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD) vs. Holiday-Related Depression

It’s helpful to distinguish between Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD) and holiday-related depression, as they can look similar but stem from different contributors.

SAD is a clinically recognized mood disorder linked primarily to seasonal changes—most commonly reduced exposure to sunlight. Symptoms often include persistent low mood, low energy, increased sleep, changes in appetite, difficulty concentrating, and withdrawal that begin in late fall or winter and improve in the spring. Treatment for SAD may include light therapy, routine stabilization, and in some cases medication alongside counseling.

Holiday-related depression, on the other hand, is more situational and emotionally driven. It is often tied to grief, family stress, identity shifts, loneliness, or unmet expectations that become more pronounced during the holidays. While it may overlap with depressive symptoms, it does not always follow a seasonal pattern and may resolve once the season passes—or continue if the underlying stressors remain unaddressed.

Many individuals experience a blend of both, where biological vulnerability and emotional stress reinforce one another. Counseling helps clarify what’s driving the experience and supports a more tailored approach to care.

It’s also important to note that many people struggling during the holidays are still functioning highly on the outside. They may be working, caregiving, hosting, and managing responsibilities while quietly feeling depleted or disconnected. Clinically, this often reflects burnout and emotional overextension rather than a lack of resilience.

In therapy, the focus is less on “fixing” the season and more on helping clients slow down enough to notice what is being stirred emotionally. This includes acknowledging grief, identifying unmet needs, supporting nervous system regulation, and creating boundaries that protect energy and well-being. Meaning-making becomes central—helping clients reconnect with who they are now, rather than who they feel pressured to be during the holidays.

When to Seek Support

Consider reaching out for professional support if you notice:

• Persistent low mood, numbness, or irritability lasting more than two weeks

• Significant changes in sleep, appetite, or energy

• Difficulty experiencing pleasure or motivation

• Increased isolation or withdrawal from others

• Feeling overwhelmed by grief, expectations, or emotional exhaustion

• A sense that you’re “getting through” the season rather than living in it

Seeking support does not mean the holidays are failing you—or that you are failing at them. Clinically, it often means something important is asking for attention.

Holiday-related depression is not a personal shortcoming or a sign of ingratitude. It is a human response to cumulative stress, unresolved grief, and identity shifts coming into focus during a season that places heavy demands on emotional connection. Counseling offers a space where these experiences can be named without judgment and where more sustainable ways of moving through the season can begin to take shape.