Have you noticed how negative the media has been recently? I know that I’m not saying anything new here, but I was just on one of my favorite gossip sites (it’s my guilty pleasure! I can’t help it!) and all of the headlines were negative. Literally, every single one was bashing one celebrity or another. From people wanting Allison Williams to suck as Peter Pan (she was great) to hating on Justin Bieber’s new hair (who cares?) to hating on Kirk Cameron’s latest movie (double dose of who cares?), this site was taking everyone down with such nastiness.
It got me thinking about how sometimes during the holidays, with so much time with relatives, it can feel like everyone’s out to harsh on you, too! It’s just stressful and claustrophobic to have to recount your life plan for every great uncle and family friend that you see between Thanksgiving and New Year’s and their reactions can be pretty judgmental. So, I thought I’d offer some tips on what to do when everyone hates everything you do.
Reality Check Yourself
I don’t know your family or your holiday situation, but I do know that not literally everyone hates everything you do. Could everyone in the room you’re currently in not approve of your life? Sure. But, that’s just a roomful of people and not the whole world. Remember, that the holidays don’t last forever. Just a few stressful days and it’ll be over. Then, you’ll be back in the real world with your people who are far less snarky about your life.
Shake It Off
Here’s the truth about haters: they hate themselves more than anything. Anyone who’s being needlessly mean to you is doing it because they’re one hundred times meaner to themselves. Know that their judgment has very little to do about you. So, just ignore it. You do you and don’t worry about people who are worrying about you. If you need help here, just listen to Taylor Swift on repeat!
Ask Why It’s Bothering You
If you can’t shake off their negativity, ask yourself why. Is it because they’ve hit on a particularly sensitive spot for you? Why is it so sensitive? One of my friends had the roughest holiday season last year because she felt like she was constantly defending herself for dating her then-boyfriend. She came home feeling like crap about it. She wasn’t able to ignore it. Instead, she kept dwelling on it and thinking about everything they said. She broke up with her boyfriend soon after. It wasn’t because her family was so negative about him. It was because she realized she wasn’t confident defending him. Sticking up for her choices actually made her feel bad about them. I know this isn’t the clearest advice. I’m basically saying either ignore the haters or listen to them! But, really, what I’m saying is listen to your gut. You’ll know the difference between being annoyed and angry over your family’s behavior or deeply upset and confused.
Good luck over the holidays, my loves. And remember, at least there are Christmas movies on TV to help you through the season!
