This story discusses suicide. If you or someone you know is having thoughts of suicide, please contact the Suicide & Crisis Lifeline at 988 or 1-800-273-TALK (8255).

The Christmas season is supposed to be a joyous time of year — but not everyone can or will have the holiday spirit. 

Illnesses, loss of family members or friends, financial stress, loneliness or other worries can become the Grinch that steals Christmas joy for many. 

The “Christmas blues” or “holiday blues” are described as temporary feelings of anxiety and depression that occur around the holidays, due to extra stress, unrealistic expectations or sentimental memories associated with the season, according to the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI). 

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During this time of year, some people might be at risk for feelings of sadness, fatigue, tension and a sense of loss, NAMI notes on its website. 

Seasonal factors may affect people’s mood quite seriously. Decreased sunlight, an increase in alcohol consumption at holiday parties, changes in diet, the over-commercialization of the season or not being able to see family or friends may all be factors. 

It is important to note that these moods are temporary, experts say. 

“A mood such as a ‘blue mood’ is a passing phenomenon,” Dr. Mark Sirkin, a clinical psychologist in New York, told Fox News Digital. 

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Sirkin, an associate dean of health professions at Long Island University, said there are things people can do to turn that “down” feeling around.

1. Ways to combat the Christmas blues
2. Ways to treat yourself during the holidays
3. Ways to budget for the holidays
4. What to know about feelings of sadness versus mental illness

1. Ways to combat the Christmas blues 

“Distract yourself, try to focus on happier thoughts and images, do something enjoyable, preferably with others. These are all good ways to ‘treat’ a blue mood,” Sirkin said. 

With social media extremely prevalent today, many people fall into a trap of comparison. This is especially true during the holidays, when people post pictures of their Christmas festivities.

“For every smile or laugh in a TikTok picture, there is a lot of reality that you don’t see,” said Sirkin.

Scrolling on social media can be detrimental to your mental health. Save your own piece by trying to limit screen time. Instead, fill your days with activities that you enjoy.  (AP Photo/Michael Dwyer, File)

Research shows that, for some people, constantly looking at the pleasures of others might actually make them feel bad, said Sirkin.

“Stop! Change the channel!” advised Sirkin. “Call a friend, and have a real conversation. Everyone has ups and downs — you, your friends, even those annoyingly happy people on social media.”

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He added, “Don’t focus on what you think you don’t have. Focus on what’s good.”

“Everyone has ups and downs — you, your friends, even those annoyingly happy people on social media.”

Doing something for others during the holiday season can brighten your mood, the psychologist said. 

One simple way to do this is by donating to a local toy or clothes drive. Donating an item to help someone in need can fill you with pride and joy during the holidays. 

Simply dropping off a product at a toy drive can increase your holiday spirit by doing something for another.  (Ben Hasty/MediaNews Group/Reading Eagle via Getty Images)

Additionally, there are many volunteer opportunities during the holiday season, like a food drive. Look around in your area for volunteer events that you can take part in to help those who are less fortunate. 

2. Ways to treat yourself during the holidays 

While the holiday season is a time for giving, it is also important to treat yourself. 

Make sure you are giving yourself grace and treating yourself to activities that you enjoy, say experts. 

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Among Sirkin’s suggestions are to reward yourself with a nice dinner or some other treat. 

“I put on the fire, watch a movie and pour a nice glass of wine to give myself a boost.”

Also, challenge yourself and say, “Why shouldn’t I be happy?” and “I deserve to be happy.”

While the holiday season is a time for giving, don’t forget to focus on your own happiness and well-being, too.  (iStock)

Margaret Palermo of Huntington, New York, agreed with the notion of treating yourself during the holidays. 

“I put on the fire, watch a movie and pour a nice glass of wine to give myself a boost during the holidays,” she told Fox News Digital. 

With the fire ablaze and wine in hand, pop on a festive flick. 

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If you need a laugh, “National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation,” “Elf” or “Christmas with the Kranks” are all good options. 

If you are in the mood for a classic, “The Polar Express,” “A Charlie Brown Christmas” or “Santa Claus Is Coming to Town” are some ideas. 

Choose a festive flick to watch during Christmas to help you get into the spirit of the season.  (iStock)

Another suggestion from Sirkin is to interact with others. 

“They are my family — friends that are family — and I enjoy being around them. They help me feel a bit happier.”

“Resist the urge to isolate yourself or crawl into a corner. Interacting with others, especially people with whom you have deep relationships, such as family, is a great way to get out of your funk,” he said.

Louise M. of Long Island, New York, said she makes plans with friends to celebrate during the holidays, now that she does not have living family members.  

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While it does not replace her memories of Christmases past with her family, she can still create nice seasonal memories with friends, she said. 

“They are my family — friends that are family — and I enjoy being around them. They help me feel a bit happier.”

Being surrounded by others during the holidays can help fill you up with love and happiness.  (iStock)

Inviting friends over for a night full of holiday dishes, Christmas cocktails and maybe even a Secret Santa gift swap can help combat the holiday blues. 

Exercise is another way to help battle the holiday blues, according to health experts.  

One woman enjoys walking around her neighborhood and looking at the holiday decorations and lights when she feels the holiday stress taking over.

Taking a brisk walk or riding a stationary bike indoors can get that blood and “feel-good” hormones pumping.  

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This can help improve moods, physical therapists told Fox News Digital. 

A woman in Annapolis, Maryland, told Fox News Digital she enjoys walking around her neighborhood and looking at the festive decorations and lights when she feels the holiday stress taking over.

Many houses go above and beyond with their holiday decorations each and every year.  (iStock)

If it is too cold or dark outside for a walk, she said she hops in the car, puts on some holiday music and looks at holiday lights throughout her town. 

Many houses throughout the country have extravagant displays that can be fun to check out with hot chocolate in hand. 

Some houses take their Christmas decorations very seriously, with lights flickering to the beat of holiday music passersby can play on their radio. These neighborhood light shows can help get you into the holiday spirit.

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Practicing meditation or mindfulness can also help, according to Sirkin. 

“This is an increasingly popular and verified method of getting out of a bad mood,” Sirkin said.

Listening to a festive playlist as you look at holiday decorations can help fill you with Christmas joy.  (iStock)

“Just sit: You can count your breaths, count to 10 over and over, or any other way you’d like to focus your mind. There are some good apps out there you can put on your phone,” he said.

“People should understand the difference between feeling sad and dealing with a mental illness.”

YouTube is another great resource to turn to if you need guided meditation. 

3. Ways to budget for the holidays 

Some health professionals said that people can avoid stress caused by excessive holiday gift spending by setting a budget and sticking to it. 

Christmas can put people into loads of credit card debt. A thoughtful gift does not mean an expensive one. Do not spend outside your means. 

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The weeks or months you will endure in debt will add lots of stress to your life beyond the Christmas season. 

Write down everyone you need to buy for, and create a budget for each person. Once you find something you want to buy, do not purchase it right away. Do research first, and see if there is a sale going on at another store to make sure you are getting the best deal possible on your item. 

Christmas shopping can be a source of stress. Create an organized budget for all those you’re shopping for, and conduct thorough research to ensure you’re getting the best price for the items you want to buy.  (iStock)

When it comes to Christmas shopping, try to start as early as possible. This will give you the optimal time to seek out the deals. You won’t have to worry about the huge crowds seeking last-minute gifts as Christmas nears. 

Once Christmas is over, the last thing on your mind is next year’s festivities. That said, the earlier you start putting aside money for the holidays, the less financial stress you’ll be hit with during the season. 

One method to consider is putting a very small sum of money aside for Christmas throughout the year. Whatever amount you have saved in December will be your budget for Christmas. 

4. What to know about feelings of sadness versus mental illness 

People should understand the difference between feeling sad and dealing with a mental illness, Sirkin noted. 

“If you think you might have a mental illness — if you have regular thoughts about suicide or hurting yourself, if you think you may harm yourself or others, if you can’t function at home or work — these are all signs of serious mental illness,” he said. 

“You should seek out professional help, beginning with your physician or trained mental health professional,” he added.

Oxford University Press has chosen “brain rot” as its word of the year.

The word is defined as “supposed deterioration of a person’s mental or intellectual state, especially viewed as a result of overconsumption of material (now particularly online content) considered to be trivial or unchallenging. Also: something characterized as likely to lead to such deterioration.”

Some experts believe that constant, endless scrolling of social media and other online content is doing exactly that – rotting our brains.

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Behavioral neuroscientist Dr. Kyra Bobinet, author of “Unstoppable Brain,” told Fox News Digital that there is a growing awareness of brain rot and its consequences.

“It’s in the zeitgeist that people have difficulty with their attention span. They feel brain foggy, they [have] less concentration … They can’t do deep work,” said California-based Bobinet.

“And then there’s also this epidemic of loneliness that has been kind of sitting on the heels of this, because we can’t really focus on anything, including relationship-building.”

Stuck in a scroll

A certain part of the brain, called the habenula, is responsible for getting stuck in endless scrolling, according to Bobinet.

The habenula is a central part of the brain that’s involved in various important functions, including motivation and decision-making. But when activated, this area can also “kill our motivation to try,” she noted.

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“It’s the heart of when you know you should be doing something, and you do this other thing instead, like ‘doom-scrolling,’” she said.

“This is the area of our brain that when it’s on, we feel depressed. We feel out of control, we feel impulsive, we feel addicted,” one neurologist said about the habenula. (iStock)

Scrolling on social media is also a way to “disassociate” and give the brain a rest after a long day, Bobinet said. This is an “avoidance behavior,” which the habenula controls.

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“Anytime you’re avoiding something, you know this area of the brain is on,” she said.

This is how social media addictions can form, Bobinet warned, as this part of the brain can make it “very painful” to stop scrolling.

“There’s this epidemic of loneliness that has been kind of sitting on the heels of this, because we can’t really focus on anything, including relationship-building,” one expert said. (iStock)

This can result in a “dangerous” loss of motivation, the neuroscientist warned.

“We all need motivation to live our lives and to feel proud of ourselves and to feel confident and to get what we want,” she told Fox News Digital. 

How to avoid brain rot

There isn’t a one-size-fits-all solution for avoiding brain rot, according to Bobinet.

The key is learning what works best for the individual, she said, which involves “tweaking and tinkering and adjusting as you go,” she said. 

“Humans are very resilient,” she added. “Once we know the truth about our bodies, then we can do something about it.”

Scrolling on social media is a way to “disassociate” and give the brain a rest after a long day, which is an “avoidance behavior,” one neuroscientist said. (iStock)

Dr. Don Grant, national adviser of healthy device management at Newport Healthcare in Los Angeles, called out device makers and content producers for keeping users hooked to their devices.

“They’re very clever, these creators who created these algorithms and also leverage our limbic system – the same [way] the people who created slot machines did,” he told Fox News Digital. “Pull the handle … You never know what you’re going to get.”

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Grant said he’s concerned about “the death of some things,” including imagination.

“We don’t have to imagine anything anymore,” he said. “We pick up our devices every time. I’m worried about memory. I’m worried about education.”

Grant said he often hears from kids that they spend eight hours on any given night scrolling and watching videos, which “disrupts their sleep hygiene.”

One expert said he often hears from kids that they spend eight hours on any given night scrolling and watching videos, which “disrupts their sleep hygiene.” (iStock)

“And I say, ‘OK, can you tell me one video you remember?’ I have yet to have one kid really be able to remember anything they saw.”

“Our brain matter is diminishing, our memories are diminishing [and] our attention spans are diminishing,” Grant warned.

“I’m worried about memory. I’m worried about education.”

The expert offered some tips to avoid getting stuck in a “doom scroll” of “endless, bottomless” content, especially for children.

Since the internet is “archived forever,” Grant noted that “FOMO,” or fear of missing out, is not a valid reason to stay online.

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“Maybe phone a friend or FaceTime your grandma for the holidays,” he suggested.

Grant also urges people to be more strategic about spending time online, splitting it up into 80% “meaningful, legitimate” content and 20% entertainment.

One expert urges people to be more strategic about spending time online, splitting it up into 80% “meaningful, legitimate” content and 20% entertainment. (iStock)

“For digital hygiene and well-being, you can set limits, you can block access,” said Grant. “Set tech-free times and zones in your home, especially for families.”

“Get outside, move a muscle … play memory games, intellectually challenging or educational games.”

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The expert also encourages people to ask themselves a few questions after scrolling to help gauge the quality of time spent.

These might include: “Could you tell me how much time you were online? Did you spend more time than you wanted to? Did you feel better?”

Grant added, “There’s a perceived danger of virtual life and how we’re using our free time – at the end of it, are you really feeling good about yourself?”

Three children are feeling pure joy this December about “the best Christmas present in the world.”

Ettie Baker, age 8, Zoey Hampton-Pigeon, age 8, and Finn Jarvis, age 11, were all given “life-changing” bionic arms this week courtesy of The Big Hero 3 campaign.

Launched by a mom named Sarah Lockey whose own daughter faced physical challenges, the campaign helps families of children with missing limbs fundraise for bionic arms, news agency SWNS reported.

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Ettie Baker’s mother, Alyse, said her daughter “screamed” when she found out about her new arm for Christmas this year.

“Ettie has always shown so much love for her difference and loves celebrating differences,” said mom Alyse Baker about her daughter.

But as the child gets older, “she is becoming increasingly aware of just how different she is,” said the mom. 

“She’s becoming more conscious of the stares when [she’s] out [among people] and is sometimes frustrated that she can’t do things the same [way] as everyone else, so having the opportunity to receive a Hero Arm is life-changing for Ettie in so many ways.”

The Hero Arm is for people living with a below-elbow limb difference. 

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The mom said her daughter is thrilled she’ll be able to ride a bike, tie her shoes, even do handstands. 

“As parents, we are excited about these things, too, but also all the other ways the Hero Arm will change Ettie’s life.”

Ettie Baker, Finn Jarvis and Zoey Pidgeon-Hampton, left to right, with their new bionic arms received for Christmas this year.  (SWNS)

Added the mom, “We are absolutely over the moon to be working together” with other families and their children. 

The Open Bionics Foundation — which provides financial support to people who need multi-grip upper limb prosthetics — as well as The Worshipful Company of The Glovers, Foresight Group and an anonymous donor have all contributed over $50,000 toward the children’s new bionic arms, SWNS reported.

It’s considered “the world’s most affordable advanced multi-grip prosthetic arm.”

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The Hero Arm is for people living with a below-elbow limb difference, the Open Bionics Foundation indicates on its website.

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The device is considered “the world’s most affordable advanced multi-grip prosthetic arm, with multi-grip functionality and empowering esthetics,” the foundation also notes. 

“Engineered and manufactured in Britain, the Hero Arm is a custom lightweight and affordable myoelectric prosthesis, now available in over 801 locations across the U.S. for below-elbow amputee adults and children aged 8 and above.”

A father described the opportunity for his daughter to receive the bionic arm as “amazing.” (SWNS)

A big chunk of the money raised so far came about because the three families worked together on it.

Thomas, the father of Zoey Hampton-Pigeon, age 8, said his daughter was so excited when she heard the news about her new arm that she was “jumping up and down squealing.” 

He described the opportunity for her as “amazing.”

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The family found out their daughter would be born with a limb difference at her 20-week scan.

Said the dad, “It was a very scary and emotional time not knowing what to expect … When Zoey was born, she saw several specialists, but there are no answers about why this happened … It’s just one of those things.”

“I want to support others who are going through the same thing.”

He described his daughter today as a “very happy, caring, confident and adventurous little girl.” 

She is “always on the go,” he said. She’s a member of a gymnastics club, takes swimming lessons and loves trampolining, he noted. 

With her new arm, she’s looking forward to being able to use a jump rope, her dad said. 

Zoey Pidgeon-Hampton, age 8, is shown receiving her new bionic arm.  (SWNS)

He also said that she “does struggle with everyday tasks such as tying her laces, using a knife and fork,” and more — and that the new bionic arm “will make such a massive difference to her independence.”

Mom Sarah Lockey was originally inspired to set up the campaign, now in its fourth run, after her daughter lost her hand to meningitis at just 15 months old.

“It turned my world around,” she told SWNS, “and I promised one day I would get Tilly her hand back. She now wears two hero arms daily – so I want to support others who are going through the same thing.”

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Lockey said the campaign helps remove some of the stress of crowdfunding for families.

“It is just incredible for three children to benefit and for their families all to meet and fundraise together,” she said.

With this opportunity, “the possibilities for him to excel are endless,” said the dad of young Finn Jarvis, age 11, shown above.  (SWNS)

Finn Jarvis, the third child who is receiving a bionic arm, has been described by his loved ones as “the boss of the family.”

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He was born without one hand, the result apparently of a car accident his mother was involved in before his birth. 

Dad Ben Jarvis said, “Finn is a happy-go-lucky boy. He is kind, fearless and extremely switched on. He is now 11 … With this opportunity of a Big Hero Arm, the possibilities for him to excel are endless,” as SWNS reported.

Lockey also said the campaign “is her ‘favorite thing’ to do — and it has been a delight for the children to meet and receive such a life-changing opportunity.”