The holiday season is often seen as a good time to connect with your relatives. It is a time filled with traditions that have been celebrated for generations within the family. Despite this, Consumer Reports finds that many Americans dread specific things about the holidays.
Soon, families across America will be celebrating Christmas, Chanukah, Winter Solstice, Kwanza, or perhaps a combination of some of those holidays. There will be traditions that have been celebrated a certain way for generations, combined with new ones that are unique to each family. On paper, it sounds like a lovely time of year.
Realistically, though, there is something about the holiday season that many people find stressful. Not all families are as kind to each other as one would ideally expect them to be at this time of year. Perhaps it is the realization of how problematic your family truly is that causes people to dread having to spend time together to celebrate a holiday. It can be difficult, if not impossible, to connect with your relatives if they are arguing, screaming, and cursing.
Consumer Reports usually does research that compares different brands of the same electronic item, or different makes of cars, with each other. It shares the information it finds with consumers, so that people can make an educated decision about which brand they want to purchase.
Recently, Consumer Reports did a survey, where they asked Americans one, simple question. What do you dread the most about the holidays, (if anything)? The survey was conducted by telephone, and included 1,013 adults, from all across the nation.
A total of 90% of the people who took the survey said that there was at least one thing that causes them stress during the holidays. Sure, there are some people who adore listening to Christmas music, shopping for presents, and everything else that goes along with this time of year. Overall, though, there are certain things about the holidays that make it unpleasant for the majority of Americans.
According to the survey, the thing that the majority of people dread the most about the holidays is “crowds and long lines”. A total of 68% of respondents said this. 37% said that the thing they dread the most is “gaining weight”, and another 37% said that they dread “getting into debt” the most.
24% of people who took the survey were honest enough to admit that “seeing certain relatives” is what they will be dreading the most this holiday season. Another 25% said that they dread “traveling” during the holidays. Why are they traveling? It is likely so that they can visit their relatives, (that they might not really want to see).
Personally, I cannot stand listening to Christmas music. 23% of the people who took the survey agreed with me, and said that “seasonal music” was the thing they were dreading the most. 15% of people said that they are dreading “having to be nice”.
Image by Jo Naylor on Flickr