Navigating Winter Break Emotions
The holiday season brings joy, excitement, special traditions, and a welcome break from school. But those same changes can also stir up big emotions in kids and teens. Many parents notice that as soon as school stops and the schedule shifts, their children become more irritable, anxious, overstimulated, or withdrawn. This isn’t a sign that anything is “wrong” with your child; it’s a normal response to a lot of change happening all at once.
Developmental research shows that children and adolescents rely heavily on predictable patterns to anchor their mood and behavior. When those patterns suddenly shift, emotions can shift too. In this blog, we’ll break down why these feelings show up and how you can support your child in meaningful, manageable ways, and we’ll share how our team can help if stress, anxiety, or executive functioning challenges become overwhelming.
Understanding Routine Disruption
One of the biggest emotional triggers for kids during holiday break is the abrupt loss of routine. School schedules offer predictable rhythms — wake up, classes, lunch, activities, homework — that create a sense of safety and structure. When vacation begins, the sudden openness of the day can feel freeing for some and unsettling for others.
Research consistently shows that routines support children’s emotional regulation, decrease behavioral challenges, and strengthen family cohesion. Predictable family rituals, even simple ones like consistent wake times or shared meals, serve as emotional anchors. During break, you don’t need to recreate the school day at home, but a bit of structure can go a long way in helping kids feel grounded.
A good starting point might be creating a simple morning routine, setting expectations for screen time, building in moments of downtime, and planning one or two touchpoints each day where the whole family reconnects. For additional ideas, check out this article from The Kids Mental Health Foundation. These repeating touchpoints help kids feel safe and grounded, even when the rest of the week is festive and unpredictable.
Screen Time Naturally Increases — Here’s How to Keep It Balanced
Holiday breaks may mean more TV, video games, and scrolling, and that’s okay. Kids suddenly have hours of unstructured time. Screens are fun, predictable, and comforting, and for many children, gaming or watching shows is a genuine way to unwind or stay socially connected.
Balanced screen use supports healthier sleep, mood, and emotional regulation. You don’t need to aim for perfection; instead, try incorporating a few gentle boundaries that fit your family’s flow. A simple approach is to choose “screen-free anchors” — maybe meals, outdoor time, or the last hour before bed — and let screens fill in around those predictable touchpoints.
Another helpful strategy is establishing “screen windows” so kids know when tech time fits into their day. This cuts down on power struggles and supports smoother transitions. Most importantly, involve your child in the planning. When kids have a voice in the rules, they’re more likely to follow them, and those conversations can become opportunities for connection rather than conflict.
Navigating Family Stress During the Holidays
Holiday stress doesn’t just affect adults, kids feel it, too. Increased family gatherings, travel, financial pressures, and busy schedules can create an emotional ripple effect. Children are incredibly sensitive to the tone of their environment. This study from the NIH notes that parental stress strongly influences children’s mood, behavior, and coping skills. When parents feel stretched thin, kids often absorb that stress and may respond with irritability, clinginess, or behavioral changes.
Recent studies in family psychology show that elevated parental stress is associated with higher levels of emotional and behavioral challenges in children. That doesn’t mean you need to be perfectly calm, nobody is. What helps most is naming feelings openly (“This week is a lot for everyone”), slowing down when possible, and giving your child a predictable place to land emotionally.
Creating micro-moments of connection like five minutes of uninterrupted attention, a walk, or a quiet activity can make a big difference. These moments help children regulate better and feel more secure amid the holiday bustle.
Feelings of Loneliness or Disappointment Are Common
Even in joyful seasons, many kids experience loneliness or disappointment. Sometimes holiday break means missing friends from school. Sometimes plans fall through. Sometimes expectations built up by movies and social media don’t match real life.
Kids may not always articulate these feelings directly. Instead, you might see boredom, irritation, withdrawal, or emotional outbursts. Validating the emotion (“It makes sense that you’re disappointed”) helps children feel understood and reduces the internal pressure they’re carrying.
You can also help your child set realistic expectations by talking openly about what your family’s holiday will look like. Previewing events and discussing both the fun and the challenges helps kids feel more prepared and less overwhelmed.
If your child is struggling with grief or missing someone important, giving them space to talk about that person or express sadness can be deeply healing. Read more here about why this season often makes grief more difficult.
Rebuilding Connection During the Break
Connection is one of the most protective factors in child and adolescent mental health. It doesn’t require elaborate traditions or expensive outings. What children remember are the moments of closeness: baking together, watching a movie as a family, taking a short walk, decorating, or even quiet time sitting next to one another.
Try sprinkling a few predictable connection points throughout the week. Think small and consistent: reading together before bed, a weekend morning breakfast, a shared game, or a simple daily ritual your child can count on. These moments buffer stress, build resilience, and strengthen family relationships, especially for kids who struggle with anxiety or big emotions.
When to Reach Out for Support
The holiday break can amplify anxiety, stress, attention challenges, and emotional reactivity. For some kids and teens, disrupted routines lead to difficulty with executive functioning, sleep, focus, or behavior. For others, the emotional ups and downs feel bigger than they can handle on their own.
If you notice that your child’s emotions are consistently intense, long-lasting, or interfering with daily life, additional support can be incredibly helpful. Therapy, executive functioning coaching, medication management, or psychiatric care can give children and families the tools they need to navigate seasonal stress with more stability and confidence.
Our clinicians specialize in supporting kids, teens, young adults, and their parents. We use evidence-based approaches to help families understand what their children are experiencing and find strategies that truly work. Whether your child is struggling with anxiety, mood changes, attention challenges, or emotional regulation, support is available, and you do not have to wait.
We’re here to help your family thrive — not just through the holidays, but all year long.
Learn more about how PM Mental Health can support your family.
