Supporting young people when the festive season feels overwhelming
For many, Christmas is painted as a joyful season: bright lights, family gatherings, gifts, celebration and time to rest. But for a significant number of the young people and families we support, the festive period can feel anything but “merry and bright”.
At Fresh Start in Education, we see the reality behind the adverts, the expectations and the pressure. We recognise that Christmas can amplify anxiety, highlight difficulties and create barriers to engagement. We want to shine a light on what this time of year can really feel like and how we can help.
🎄 The Pressure to Be Happy
Young people who already struggle with anxiety, trauma, or low mood can find December especially challenging. Everywhere they turn, the message is the same: be joyful, be social, be excited.
For some, this pressure can feel suffocating.
For others, it only reinforces the belief that they’re “different,” “difficult,” or “getting it wrong.”
We know that emotional wellbeing doesn’t follow a seasonal schedule, and many young people need extra space, understanding and reassurance at this time of year.
🏠 Not Every Home Feels Festive
Christmas can highlight social difficulties, strained relationships or unstable living situations.
For young people in care, experiencing family breakdown, or navigating conflict at home, the holidays can be a painful reminder of what they feel they’re missing or of past experiences.
Even small things, financial pressure, changes in routine, busy environments, can increase stress for families already coping with complex needs.
This is why a calm, consistent, trauma-informed approach is so important.
🔄 Changes in Routine Can Be Overwhelming
The end of term often brings excitement for some, but for others, it brings uncertainty.
Changes in timetable, different teachers, special events, noisy classrooms, and disrupted schedules can all contribute to dysregulation.
For neurodivergent young people, this shift can be particularly destabilising.
Clear expectations and predictable structure matter more than ever during December.
🎁 Sensory Overload Is Real
Flashing lights, loud music, decorations everywhere, magical for some, overwhelming for many.
Young people with sensory needs or heightened sensitivity may find the environment exhausting. What looks festive to us can feel chaotic to them.
Being mindful, offering sensory breaks, and giving young people choice can make a huge difference.
💬 “What Are Your Plans for Christmas?” Isn’t Always a Simple Question
We often ask it without thinking, but for some young people, this can trigger worry, shame, sadness or confusion.
It’s a reminder that Christmas looks different in every home and sometimes it doesn’t look like Christmas at all.
Approaching these conversations with gentle curiosity, rather than assumptions, helps build psychological safety and trust.
❤️ How Fresh Start Supports Young People at Christmas
Our work doesn’t slow down in December because moments of transition are when young people often need us most.
We support by:
- Providing calm, consistent 1:1 sessions
- Offering emotional regulation strategies
- Maintaining predictable routines
- Empowering young people with choice, voice and control
- Using trauma-informed, relational approaches
- Helping families and professionals understand triggers during the season
Most importantly, we show up.
We listen.
We meet each young person where they are, not where we expect them to be.
🌟 A Different Kind of December
Christmas doesn’t have to be perfect, and it doesn’t have to look a certain way.
For some of the children and young people we support, the greatest gift is simply being seen, understood and accepted, exactly as they are.
As we move through this season, let’s remember that behind every festive jumper or event, there’s a young person experiencing Christmas in their own unique way.
If you would like to find out more about the support Fresh Start offers local authorities and schools, please click here to book a time to speak with one of our team.
