If you have walked into at least one shopping centre in recent days, you won't have been able to miss the incredible crowds in stores. The shops are being decorated with Christmas seasonal decorations earlier than ever, but shopping for Christmas presents in mid-November is something new and unusual. The Christmas holiday shopping season has started, reports Večernji List on November 15, 2018.
Professor of psychology Ljubica Uvodić Vranić says that we should not focus on material gifts, but instead find other ways to show our love, such as hugs, walks, conversations and reconciliation. She remembers that holidays in the past used to be a matter for family and communion, while today they are synonymous with consumerism, with a competition “who will buy a bigger and better gift.”
“No wonder January is the saddest month since all the bills have to be paid then. People should not be burdened with material gifts, and especially not try to demonstrate their love by spending money. Instead, it is necessary to sort out your priorities so that your family would not suffer later due to the lack of money,” says Uvodić Vranić.
She adds that spending too much money in December and even in November is not logical since all bills will have to be paid eventually. There is no need to believe that giving presents will solve any problems. She says that advertising and the society are to blame. “Advertisements are mostly to blame, but also the way we influence each other. At work, at sports clubs, on the streets, among friends... there is always someone who starts talking about how he or she has bought an excellent gift and that starts to feel like pressure.”
She also discussed the problem of giving “large” gifts. She says that each year expectations for the next year increase, and that creates stress in the person who gives the present. This is precisely the worst consequence of the pressure, since many people feel the lack of money in January, which creates additional stress.
She explains that the greatest stress in life is felt due to the death of a close family member, followed by illness and losing a job. Losing a job is often accompanied by a lack of money, so it is not difficult to conclude that similar stress occurs after buying too expensive gifts, which creates a similar effect.
For more on the Christmas holiday season in Croatia, click here.
Translated from Večernji List (reported by Iva Kordić).
