December Blues

Lovers + Friends coat (c/o REVOLVE)
Le Chateau top (c/o) (similar)
Levi’s jeans
BRAVE Leather belt (c/o)
Aldo boots
Chanel handbag
Celine sunglasses
Anthropologie hat
Calvin Klein gloves

Let’s get real for a second: December is rough. Sure, it’s the most wonderful time of the year, at least according to the song. But it’s also the time of year that comes with the most pressure for perfection, the most potential for disappointment, and, for a lot of people, the possibility of a lot of loneliness.

My work gives me a unique perspective on this, there’s no doubt about it. When you spend most of your time working with people who have mental health concerns and addictions, if not both, things are pretty fraught a lot of the time – but especially in December. This is the time of year when I most often have to call the police to report suicide risks. It’s the time of year when I spend my afternoons calling everyone I can manage to fit in, just in case I’m the only person they have in their life to wish them Merry Christmas. While most of us are sipping eggnog and hanging twinkle lights, many people around us, some of whom we might even know, are struggling just to make it from one day to the next until the holidays end.

Every year, I start work on December first feeling hopeful. But sadly, every year the story is the same. And the closer we get to Christmas, the more intense it becomes. Strangely, this isn’t why Christmas isn’t my holiday – I wasn’t a fan long before I start the job I do now. With that said, though, it’s not easy to wax poetic about gingerbread men and pretty wrapping paper when most days serve as a reminder that December isn’t an overwhelmingly joyful time for many, many people. But those reminders also make me very aware of just how fortunate I am.

My holidays will be starting with a hair appointment later today and, following that, a much needed glass of wine. However you celebrate, I hope this season is everything you hope it can be and more. Happy holidays!