Senior Living: How to ease the ‘Holiday Blues’

If you are feeling down, you may be experiencing the holiday blues. It is not a clinical diagnosis but a recurring feeling of general sadness. You may feel more irritable, anxious, tired, or tense, and have lost interest in doing things you used to enjoy.

If you feel the blues are sneaking past Santa into your holidays, or if you know someone who feels down, here are some things a person can do.

Find time for yourself: read a book, take a bath, or go for a nice walk. Knitting or crocheting can be relaxing, and at the same time, you can make that special gift for your grandchild or great-grandchild.

Set realistic expectations. The holiday season can be a stressful, busy time: purchasing special gifts at the local stores, writing Christmas cards, putting up Christmas decorations, and cooking that special meal for the family gathering.

So don’t try to do everything. Friends and family don’t expect us to be perfect; they just don’t want us to do anything embarrassing — I try! Even when we want to make the best impression, sometimes we have to say no, and that is not always easy.

Get involved. Make someone else’s holiday special. There are many organizations needing volunteers, from food banks to senior centers. And something as simple as a fifteen-minute phone call can brighten someone’s day.

Celebrate the present, but don’t forget the past. You may be grieving from the loss of a loved one and are not yet ready to make new holiday memories without them. But you might want to pay special remembrance by looking at old photos, making their favorite foods, or gathering with family or friends and sharing favorite memories about them. By doing so, you acknowledge that although your loved one is gone, they’re certainly not forgotten.

Avoid isolating yourself. Get out; enjoy the company of others. You don’t have to be the life of the party; just being with others can help push the blues away.

(And I need to mention, if you feel you are experiencing something more severe than the holiday blues, consider speaking with a healthcare professional.)

During the holiday season, life’s difficulties can take center stage. We all struggle with our own personal challenges, but if we focus on all we have: family, friends, and pumpkin pie, we can see there is much to be thankful for.

I wish you the very best and have a wonderful Thanksgiving!

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Brain Tease: There are five houses. A blue house, a pink house, a yellow house, a red house, and a green house. The blue is made out of blue bricks. The pink is made out of pink bricks. The yellow is made out of yellow bricks. The red is made out of red bricks. What is the green house made out of?

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Minnie Pearl, whose catchphrase was “How-w-w-DEE-E-E-E!”’ was the female country comedian who always wore a hat with the price tag still attached. I received correct answers from Doug Nelson, Judy Kiser, Bruce Johnson, Ken Jernstedt, Dave Lutgens, Tina Castanares, Donna Mollet, Lana Tepfer, Pat Evenson-Brady, Jess Birge, Nancy Higgins, Rhonda Spies, Marlene Clymer, Craig Terry, Debbie Medina, Stephen Woolpert, Eva Summers, and Mike McFarlane who is this week’s winner of a quilt raffle ticket.

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A friend told me that when he was young, he was an avid reader of westerns, including those by Louis L’Amour and this writer, born in 1872 and known as the “father of the Western novel”. For this week’s “Remember When” question, who was this author who wrote more than ninety novels, including his best-selling “Riders of the Purple Sage” (1912), that were adapted into 112 films and a television series? Email your answer to mcseniorcenter@gmail.com, leave a message at 541-980-4645, or send it with a picture of his rickety log cabin in the remote lower Rogue River canyon, which is open to the public and preserved by the BLM.

And last week, while avoiding stepping on sidewalk cracks, I missed Marlene Clymer, Rebecca Abrams, and Patty Jo McCarthy.

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Well, it’s been another week searching for the right answers to the wrong questions. Until we meet again, as you gather with family, you may want to remember the advice of Miss Manners: “If you can’t be kind, at least be vague.”

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‘As long as the world is turning and spinning, we’re gonna be dizzy and we’re gonna make mistakes.”

— Mel Brooks

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Nutritious home-delivered and in-person meals are available at noon Monday through Friday unless otherwise noted.

Seniors of Mosier Valley (541-980-1157) — Wednesdays with music on second and fourth Wednesdays; Mt. Hood Town Hall (541-308-5997) — Tuesdays; Hood River Valley Adult Center (541-386-2060); Sherman County Senior and Community Center (541-565-3191); The Dalles Meals-on-Wheels (541-298-8333).

For meal sites in Washington, call Klickitat County Senior Services: Goldendale office (509-773-3757) or the White Salmon office (509-493-3068), and in Skamania County call Senior Services (509-427-3990).