Post Holiday Blues

It's over! Now what?

The holidays are over, the weather is awful, there's not much to look forward to and it is really a natural let down.

You'd think those who dread the stress of gift giving and parties and dysfunctional family gatherings would be happy when it's all over—but think again.

We see this a lot clinically, that people get through stressful things and then collapse the first moment the heat's off them. And all these sorts of phenomenon are applicable to January.

Many of us are also paying the price for the extravagances of the season: Bills are piling up, clothes fit a little too tight. If you're clinically depressed, seek help. If you're just a little down, you might use your discomfort for motivation: ;Make a New Year's resolution to exercise and eat healthy… ;Watch your alcohol intake which can affect sleep quality and mood. ;Meditate or write down your feelings. Try to uncover a pattern you can address. ;Volunteer. Focusing on someone else's plight may help bring yours into perspective. And if that's not enough to put the skip back in your step…

Planning fun things in January is a good way to deal with that. If it's because the holidays are so miserable for you and you've just held it together and now it's over, then that goes back to re-thinking how one spends the holidays.

In the meantime, take comfort in knowing you're not alone…

It's kind of rough. And for us to say, 'you and everybody else'is comforting. It's good to know we're all kind of in the same place and we will recover.

For WebMD, I'm Damon Meharg.