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Sadness during holidays


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  • SAMHSA’s National Helpline is a free, confidential, 24/7, 365-day-a-year treatment referral and information service (in English and Spanish) for individuals and families facing mental and/or substance use disorders.

    Also visit the online treatment locator.

SAMHSA’s National Helpline, 1-800-662-HELP (4357) (also known as the Treatment Referral Routing Service), or TTY: 1-800-487-4889 is a confidential, free, 24-hour-a-day, 365-day-a-year, information service, in English and Spanish, for individuals and family members facing mental and/or substance use disorders. This service provides referrals to local treatment facilities, support groups, and community-based organizations.

Also visit the online treatment locator, or send your zip code via text message: 435748 (HELP4U) to find help near you. Read more about the HELP4U text messaging service.

The service is open 24/7, 365 days a year.

English and Spanish are available if you select the option to speak with a national representative. Currently, the 435748 (HELP4U) text messaging service is only available in English.

In 2020, the Helpline received 833,598 calls. This is a 27 percent increase from 2019, when the Helpline received a total of 656,953 calls for the year.

The referral service is free of charge. If you have no insurance or are underinsured, we will refer you to your state office, which is responsible for state-funded treatment programs. In addition, we can often refer you to facilities that charge on a sliding fee scale or accept Medicare or Medicaid. If you have health insurance, you are encouraged to contact your insurer for a list of participating health care providers and facilities.

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Last Updated

Last Updated: 08/30/2022

Alcohol, Tobacco, and Other Drugs

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Misusing alcohol, tobacco, and other drugs can have both immediate and long-term health effects.

The misuse and abuse of alcohol, tobacco, illicit drugs, and prescription medications affect the health and well-being of millions of Americans. NSDUH estimates allow researchers, clinicians, policymakers, and the general public to better understand and improve the nation’s behavioral health. These reports and detailed tables present estimates from the 2021 National Survey on Drug Use and Health (NSDUH).

Alcohol

Data:

  • Among the 133.1 million current alcohol users aged 12 or older in 2021, 60.0 million people (or 45.1%) were past month binge drinkers. The percentage of people who were past month binge drinkers was highest among young adults aged 18 to 25 (29.2% or 9.8 million people), followed by adults aged 26 or older (22.4% or 49.3 million people), then by adolescents aged 12 to 17 (3.8% or 995,000 people). (2021 NSDUH)
  • Among people aged 12 to 20 in 2021, 15.1% (or 5.9 million people) were past month alcohol users. Estimates of binge alcohol use and heavy alcohol use in the past month among underage people were 8.3% (or 3.2 million people) and 1.6% (or 613,000 people), respectively. (2021 NSDUH)
  • In 2020, 50.0% of people aged 12 or older (or 138.5 million people) used alcohol in the past month (i.e., current alcohol users) (2020 NSDUH)
  • Among the 138.5 million people who were current alcohol users, 61.6 million people (or 44. 4%) were classified as binge drinkers and 17.7 million people (28.8% of current binge drinkers and 12.8% of current alcohol users) were classified as heavy drinkers (2020 NSDUH)
  • The percentage of people who were past month binge alcohol users was highest among young adults aged 18 to 25 (31.4%) compared with 22.9% of adults aged 26 or older and 4.1% of adolescents aged 12 to 17 (2020 NSDUH)
  • Excessive alcohol use can increase a person’s risk of stroke, liver cirrhosis, alcoholic hepatitis, cancer, and other serious health conditions
  • Excessive alcohol use can also lead to risk-taking behavior, including driving while impaired. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reports that 29 people in the United States die in motor vehicle crashes that involve an alcohol-impaired driver daily

Programs/Initiatives:

  • STOP Underage Drinking interagency portal - Interagency Coordinating Committee on the Prevention of Underage Drinking
  • Interagency Coordinating Committee on the Prevention of Underage Drinking
  • Talk. They Hear You.
  • Underage Drinking: Myths vs. Facts
  • Talking with your College-Bound Young Adult About Alcohol

Relevant links:

  • National Association of State Alcohol and Drug Abuse Directors
  • Department of Transportation Office of Drug & Alcohol Policy & Compliance
  • Alcohol Policy Information Systems Database (APIS)
  • National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism

Tobacco

Data:

  • In 2020, 20.7% of people aged 12 or older (or 57.3 million people) used nicotine products (i.e., used tobacco products or vaped nicotine) in the past month (2020 NSDUH)
  • Among past month users of nicotine products, nearly two thirds of adolescents aged 12 to 17 (63.1%) vaped nicotine but did not use tobacco products. In contrast, 88.9% of past month nicotine product users aged 26 or older used only tobacco products (2020 NSDUH)
  • Tobacco use is the leading cause of preventable death, often leading to lung cancer, respiratory disorders, heart disease, stroke, and other serious illnesses. The CDC reports that cigarette smoking causes more than 480,000 deaths each year in the United States
  • The CDC’s Office on Smoking and Health reports that more than 16 million Americans are living with a disease caused by smoking cigarettes

Electronic cigarette (e-cigarette) use data:

  • In 2021, 13.2 million people aged 12 or older (or 4.7%) used an e-cigarette or other vaping device to vape nicotine in the past month. The percentage of people who vaped nicotine was highest among young adults aged 18 to 25 (14.1% or 4.7 million people), followed by adolescents aged 12 to 17 (5.2% or 1.4 million people), then by adults aged 26 or older (3.2% or 7.1 million people).
  • Among people aged 12 to 20 in 2021, 11.0% (or 4.3 million people) used tobacco products or used an e-cigarette or other vaping device to vape nicotine in the past month. Among people in this age group, 8.1% (or 3.1 million people) vaped nicotine, 5.4% (or 2.1 million people) used tobacco products, and 3. 4% (or 1.3 million people) smoked cigarettes in the past month. (2021 NSDUH)
  • Data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s 2020 National Youth Tobacco Survey. Among both middle and high school students, current use of e-cigarettes declined from 2019 to 2020, reversing previous trends and returning current e-cigarette use to levels similar to those observed in 2018
  • E-cigarettes are not safe for youth, young adults, or pregnant women, especially because they contain nicotine and other chemicals

Resources:

  • Tips for Teens: Tobacco
  • Tips for Teens: E-cigarettes
  • Implementing Tobacco Cessation Programs in Substance Use Disorder Treatment Settings
  • Synar Amendment Program

Links:

  • Truth Initiative
  • FDA Center for Tobacco Products
  • CDC Office on Smoking and Health
  • National Institute on Drug Abuse: Tobacco, Nicotine, and E-Cigarettes
  • National Institute on Drug Abuse: E-Cigarettes

Opioids

Data:

  • Among people aged 12 or older in 2021, 3. 3% (or 9.2 million people) misused opioids (heroin or prescription pain relievers) in the past year. Among the 9.2 million people who misused opioids in the past year, 8.7 million people misused prescription pain relievers compared with 1.1 million people who used heroin. These numbers include 574,000 people who both misused prescription pain relievers and used heroin in the past year. (2021 NSDUH)
  • Among people aged 12 or older in 2020, 3.4% (or 9.5 million people) misused opioids in the past year. Among the 9.5 million people who misused opioids in the past year, 9.3 million people misused prescription pain relievers and 902,000 people used heroin (2020 NSDUH)
  • According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s Understanding the Epidemic, an average of 128 Americans die every day from an opioid overdose

Resources:

  • Medications for Substance Use Disorders
  • Opioid Overdose Prevention Toolkit
  • TIP 63: Medications for Opioid Use Disorder
  • Use of Medication-Assisted Treatment for Opioid Use Disorder in Criminal Justice Settings
  • Opioid Use Disorder and Pregnancy
  • Clinical Guidance for Treating Pregnant and Parenting Women With Opioid Use Disorder and Their Infants
  • The Facts about Buprenorphine for Treatment of Opioid Addiction
  • Pregnancy Planning for Women Being Treated for Opioid Use Disorder
  • Tips for Teens: Opioids
  • Rural Opioid Technical Assistance Grants
  • Tribal Opioid Response Grants
  • Provider’s Clinical Support System - Medication Assisted Treatment Grant Program

Links:

  • National Institute on Drug Abuse: Opioids
  • National Institute on Drug Abuse: Heroin
  • HHS Prevent Opioid Abuse
  • Community Anti-Drug Coalitions of America
  • Addiction Technology Transfer Center (ATTC) Network
  • Prevention Technology Transfer Center (PTTC) Network

Marijuana

Data:

  • In 2021, marijuana was the most commonly used illicit drug, with 18. 7% of people aged 12 or older (or 52.5 million people) using it in the past year. The percentage was highest among young adults aged 18 to 25 (35.4% or 11.8 million people), followed by adults aged 26 or older (17.2% or 37.9 million people), then by adolescents aged 12 to 17 (10.5% or 2.7 million people).
  • The percentage of people who used marijuana in the past year was highest among young adults aged 18 to 25 (34.5%) compared with 16.3% of adults aged 26 or older and 10.1% of adolescents aged 12 to 17 (2020 NSDUH)
  • Marijuana can impair judgment and distort perception in the short term and can lead to memory impairment in the long term
  • Marijuana can have significant health effects on youth and pregnant women.

Resources:

  • Know the Risks of Marijuana
  • Marijuana and Pregnancy
  • Tips for Teens: Marijuana

Relevant links:

  • National Institute on Drug Abuse: Marijuana
  • Addiction Technology Transfer Centers on Marijuana
  • CDC Marijuana and Public Health

Emerging Trends in Substance Misuse:

  • Methamphetamine—In 2019, NSDUH data show that approximately 2 million people used methamphetamine in the past year. Approximately 1 million people had a methamphetamine use disorder, which was higher than the percentage in 2016, but similar to the percentages in 2015 and 2018. The National Institute on Drug Abuse Data shows that overdose death rates involving methamphetamine have quadrupled from 2011 to 2017. Frequent meth use is associated with mood disturbances, hallucinations, and paranoia.
  • Cocaine—In 2019, NSDUH data show an estimated 5.5 million people aged 12 or older were past users of cocaine, including about 778,000 users of crack. The CDC reports that overdose deaths involving have increased by one-third from 2016 to 2017. In the short term, cocaine use can result in increased blood pressure, restlessness, and irritability. In the long term, severe medical complications of cocaine use include heart attacks, seizures, and abdominal pain.
  • Kratom—In 2019, NSDUH data show that about 825,000 people had used Kratom in the past month. Kratom is a tropical plant that grows naturally in Southeast Asia with leaves that can have psychotropic effects by affecting opioid brain receptors. It is currently unregulated and has risk of abuse and dependence. The National Institute on Drug Abuse reports that health effects of Kratom can include nausea, itching, seizures, and hallucinations.

Resources:

  • Tips for Teens: Methamphetamine
  • Tips for Teens: Cocaine
  • National Institute on Drug Abuse

More SAMHSA publications on substance use prevention and treatment.

Last Updated

Last Updated: 03/22/2023

Why am I sad on holidays? I just want to lay down and lie down. And turn off this freaking garland. Where does the New Year blues come from and how to defeat it - we figure it out together with psychologist Elizaveta Labazina.

Holiday depression, or blues, is a feeling of despondency and apathy that covers people on the eve of the New Year holidays and on the holidays themselves. Signs of the holiday blues may include:

  • changes in appetite or weight - usually people eat more and drink more;
  • changes in sleep patterns - lack of sleep, difficulty getting out of bed in the morning;
  • depressed or irritable mood;
  • difficulty concentrating;
  • feelings of worthlessness or guilt;
  • feeling more than usual tired;
  • feeling of tension and restlessness;
  • loss of pleasure from doing what you used to like.

Holiday blues is not considered a separate mental illness. This is a specific condition that is easily confused with seasonal affective disorder (SAD), a form of depression that occurs during certain months.

Here are hints on how to tell them apart:

  • Duration. The holiday blues start in November or December and end shortly after the end of the New Year holidays. SAD typically lasts about 40% of the year, starting in the fall and ending in early spring.
  • Severity of the condition. The symptoms of the holiday blues are fairly mild, unlike SAD, which can be debilitating.

If you are still depressed or anxious after the holidays, it is best to go to the doctor and find out if you have real depression. People with mental illness are more prone to moping around the holidays. According to the National Alliance on Mental Illness, 64% of people with mental illness say holidays make their condition worse.

People can experience holiday angst for a number of reasons. Some of them include the following.

  • A busy schedule: on the eve of the holidays, new things are added to current affairs - buying gifts, preparing for corporate parties and matinees, planning New Year holidays. All this can lead to lack of sleep and stress, especially if a person has a large family.
  • Difficulties with money: holiday spending increases, and financial problems are another source of stress. According to the American Psychological Association, 72% of people worry about money.
  • Isolation: Holidays can increase feelings of loneliness if you can't spend them with friends or family. A fly in the ointment is added by the pandemic and covid restrictions.
  • Unjustified expectations: people sum up the results of the year and realize that they did less than they wanted and could. This is exacerbated by the success of friends and acquaintances in social networks. The result is a feeling of worthlessness and fatigue. In addition, they trumpet from all corners: smile and catch snowflakes with your mouth when you want to bury your face in tinsel and whine.

New Year longing concerns not only adults. Children may be upset that nothing interesting happens on vacation, that there are quarrels in the family, that there are no friends, that the grandmother has become old and no longer dances near the Christmas tree.

Elizaveta Labazina, psychologist:

Children may well get "infected" with holiday blues from adults. If parents pretend to be happy on holidays, but something else is written on their face, children read these signals well.

In addition, the entertainment industry broadcasts to us exactly how the “perfect holiday” should be, and many parents try to match without taking into account the characteristics of the child. Maybe he does not want a party for 20 children, he does not like some of them, or he does not agree to the simultaneous arrival of all relatives who demand from him to show how he learned to play the flute.

The melancholy that overcomes some people a few days before their birthday and on the holiday itself is a kind of holiday blues. The birthday blues has the same symptoms, but different causes:

  • Fear of old age.
  • Bad memories of celebrating a birthday in childhood.
  • Expectations that did not come true: in society there are attitudes that at 20, 30, 40 years old a person should have a diploma, a partner, children, a career, an apartment and anything else. Especially the birthday boy can be upset by round dates.
  • Despondency due to the fact that there are no friends and acquaintances around with whom one could have fun.
  • Fear of increased attention to oneself - some people are shy and withdrawn and it is unpleasant for them to be in the epicenter of events.
  • Anxiety that the birthday will not go as you planned, that the holiday will not work out and friends will be bored.

Just because holiday blues is not considered a mental illness, that doesn't mean its symptoms can be ignored.

Psychologist Elizaveta Labazina believes that it is possible to go to a specialist even if you are just “sad”: the desire to receive support is already a reason. But if despondency lasts more than two weeks, worsens sharply, or suicidal thoughts arise, then it is definitely worth consulting to rule out depression.

- A moderate decrease in mood on a holiday is most often associated with unrealistic expectations from it. A person expects something special from an ordinary day. For example, he is not satisfied with his relationship with a partner and it seems that everything should be different on a holiday. Or, on the contrary, he subconsciously expects that the partner will “spoil” this day and it will be possible to “remember” him for the whole year.

People tend to attribute New Years and birthdays, especially anniversaries, to deadline functions. It is especially difficult if the expectations were unrealistic or abstract: “build a career by the age of 30”, “deal with health”, “find harmony”. It's okay to make plans, but it's important to make them real. It is also worth considering whether you missed something important when summing up. Yes, you may not have gone in for sports, but during the year you took care of the child, forming close relationships with him that will be important for him all his life.

Our feelings and experiences depend on how we perceive the situation. For example, a person saw the results of the year in a friend’s feed, saying that he “achieved everything he dreamed of.” And I thought: "What a loser I am." Sad, despaired, went to the store for wine.

Let's try to help ourselves and change our thinking a little. The situation is the same: a friend boasts of achievements in social networks. Instead of comparing yourself with him, you can “twist” the thought and come to the point that a friend can embellish his achievements or think: “Actually, I also spent this year not meaninglessly: I tried to fill it with something important for myself, for example this and that." We watch how emotions change: sadness may have remained, but it is no longer so intense. Behavior can also change: a person will not go for wine, but will call a loved one for support.

It is also important to separate the concepts of goals and values. A person may have a goal for the year to “visit five countries”, and the underlying value is to get new emotions and impressions. This value can be realized in many ways. To realize yourself in helping others, it is not necessary to open a charity fund for orphans in third world countries, you can help a lonely elderly neighbor deal with food delivery and the Internet.

In social networks, we see the achieved goals in the form of material achievements. First, they rarely turn out to be true: we've all read about rental cars and "ideal" families with domestic violence. Secondly, they may not bring happiness and satisfaction if they are not consistent with values.

Social media hygiene is also very important. If after talking with a friend you feel bad, then it is normal to limit meetings or simply stop seeing each other. It's the same with social media subscriptions.

If you are frustrated by the perfect mothers who give birth every year right during cardio training, while opening a fifth business in parallel, then you should click "unsubscribe".

Remember that a holiday is just a day. It differs little from the previous ones. If it's a weekend, use it. Think about what is important for you during this period. Tired - take a rest. No need to plan an expedition to the mountains or decorate an apartment in the best traditions of Pinterest. You and your loved ones will be much happier with Olivier from the nearest cafe, but with you satisfied than with a table set for 20 dishes and a birthday boy whose eye twitches.

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Why do we get so sad on holidays, says the psychologist

  • Zdorovye

You can often hear the phrase: the New Year is coming soon, but I'm not up to the holiday. Not all people are happy with the New Year's fuss, preparation for meetings with friends and family, buying gifts and corporate parties. Some people get depressed about it.

December 29, 20221

Source:
iStockphoto

Alas, as the New Year holidays approach, psychologists have more work to do: people complain that there is no mood, life has ceased to please, there is no desire for celebrations and communication. Of course, this year was not easy, but often we are able to look for positive everywhere, even in difficult life situations. It's a completely different matter when depression occurs.

In this case, the surrounding fuss, communication with people can lead to serious complications. Olga Shorokhova, a practicing psychologist, family consultant, adult and child psychologist at the ABIA clinic, told Doctor Peter why this is happening.

When it’s not fun at all…

“I have always been a cheerful girl, but now I don’t remember when I lost my laughter,” a beautiful woman with sad eyes says at an online consultation.

“I have forgotten how to enjoy life,” echoes the sweet girl sitting in the office.

“I'm cool, cool,” says the teenager. “True, recently I felt like no one needed, or rather one girl uninteresting.”

Many at receptions say monstrous things, up to thoughts of suicide. But why do young people and women, men, whose life is measured and stable, suddenly lose the desire to enjoy life?

See also

What do all these stories have in common?

What all these people have in common is that they are in a state of overt or covert depression, but do not notice it. They unwittingly hide problems both from themselves and from loved ones. And before they come to a specialist, a lot of time passes.

The person does this unconsciously. In depression, there is no criticism of one's condition. You feel very bad, but there is no strength, desire and resources to change anything in your condition.

Depression wears a mask

Depression can hide under various masks for years, mimicking health problems. For example, it can manifest itself as abdominal pain, headache, aggressive behavior, conflicts with or without cause, tearfulness, insomnia or drowsiness, overeating or poor appetite, eternal diets and endless going to doctors who find gastritis, osteochondrosis, vegetative- vascular dystonia.

Close people often do not notice and underestimate the condition of a person with depression. Since the sufferer does not want to be a burden, he is afraid to show his condition, he does not want to complain. He or she tries to look strong and successful, rich, beautiful in the eyes of other people, as in the photo in social networks. Depression is supported by the modern myth of our time “smile, don’t be a wimp, and the whole world will be at your feet.”

See also

Why on holidays?

It is difficult for a person in a state of depression to cope with ordinary affairs, but here the fuss begins on the eve of the holidays. And we become even more vulnerable and confused. Panic thoughts overwhelm my head, what to do, how to be, how to cope with such a huge load of problems? “I have been waiting for the holidays for so long to hide under a warm blanket by the fireplace and not stick my nose out of there! And what about the guests? I don't want to see anyone. I dream of being in silence, alone with myself.

Holidays for such people can generally seem like a complete nightmare. “Why are all these people calling me, I don’t want to talk. I do not need gifts and guests, I do not need anyone now. Leave me all alone." These are the thoughts that swirl around in my head.

In addition, while a person is working, studying, busy with the usual things, which are already difficult, he does not feel loneliness. The feeling of melancholy is aggravated during the holidays. When everyone is running, hurrying with holiday packages, photos of happy faces and New Year's corporate parties flash in social networks, which only annoy an already dull person.

It is important to understand that there are problems

Recognizing depression in a loved one is very difficult. She knows how to hide even behind a smile and a good mood. This is also fueled by the fact that society often treats people with a low mood negatively. Social networks show smiles and success . There are examples of famous people who have passed away, and none of their friends and relatives could have imagined that they had depression.

According to WHO, depression is the number one disease in the world. Her age is very younger: parents bring even younger children with signs of depression to the appointment. The largest number of depressions is recorded among adolescents and the elderly. But it is likely that many are simply underexamined so far, because they are making a career and sometimes they are not up to doctors and psychologists.

See also

How to start the fight against depression in the New Year?

Look around, look at your family and friends.

Learn more