What worries us this Christmas
What’s not to love about Christmas – all the family gathering to celebrate, a time for spiritual affirmation, presents for over-excited children, a table-laden feast, bubbly and - it’s a HOLIDAY. Christmas is the exciting end to the year.
Except … many in our community don’t celebrate Christmas and actually dread it.
To them, the Christmas season is a drawn out, intense reminder that their lives, filled with problems such as anxiety, poverty, addiction and family upheaval are so different to others.
That sounds brutal, but we know and see the reality here at the Christchurch City Mission. Our staff know what is coming and they are worried for our clients.
Foodbank team leader Kirsty will coordinate the Mission’s biggest operation of the year when we provide 1800 special Christmas food parcels in the week before Christmas Day. “It is going to be so hard for some people to afford to try and do anything for Christmas when they already can’t meet their costs,” she says. “We are seeing more people who have an income, but still struggle, and I think some people who got by previously will find it very hard this year. “
“We are seeing more people
who have an income, but still
struggle, and I think some people
who got by previously will find it
very hard this year.”
She says adults can hide away from Christmas, and many do, but when they have children at school surrounded by classmates talking about presents and turkey and chocolates, it can be very embarrassing and stressful for parents who have nothing.
She knows our food parcels will mean a great deal to them.
City Mission Financial Mentor Shanice says when Christmas decorations start appearing at the start of November it can fill struggling families with dread. The pressure to have a Christmas celebration forces people to spend what they can’t afford.
“I see a lot of problems with buy now-pay later options around Christmas. They come in to see me in early January and they have all this debt.” She says they fall into the trap of using more debt to cover debt repayments.
Shanice says this is especially tough for those on benefits who are renting privately because they can spend half their income and other entitlements on rent alone, leaving very little to live on and no possibility of saving to celebrate Christmas.
Our Outreach worker Josh says he worries about the mental health problems and loneliness our clients will feel on the streets over Christmas. “There’s a lot of trauma that Christmas can bring if you have had children taken off you. But it’s their loneliness I worry about.”
Men’s day programme supervisor Phil agrees, especially for men who have lost contact with their children. “Christmas would be the worst time of year for our day programme guys, especially for a man who has children and he already feels bad enough being homeless or lonely, and then being without his kids at that time really hurts.”
Our social workers also point out everything is closed, stressed families who have no hope of ever affording a holiday are crammed together 24/7 and stress levels rise. Domestic abuse and violence spike at Christmas time.
Addiction services manager Annette says many factors about Christmas make it hard for someone trying to recover from addiction. It’s a season when drinking is expected and end of year functions are celebrated with alcohol.
Christmas draws people together. Those trying to break free of addiction and who need to keep away from inappropriate friends and family to do so, find themselves being drawn back into old harmful habits.
“A lot of people experience increased use of alcohol and other substances, which in itself, ends up resulting in more financial stress, more arguments and disharmony within families, and also more domestic violence,” she says.
If all this sounds too grim, the upside is that we at the Mission will be there for these people and our compassion, expertise and willingness to help will make a positive difference and give them a chance to experience Christmas with everyone else.