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How to be alone on the holidays

Photo courtesy of U.S. News and World Report.

Photo courtesy of U.S. News and World Report.

So you unhappy about being alone on the holidays. How do you get through it?

U.S. News and World Report reporter Laura McMullen interviewed LeslieBeth Wish, a relationship expert for the National Association of Social Workers, and others for advice for this article.

Wish said people who do not want to be alone should acknowledge their sadness and not try to cover it with false frivolity. You cannot address a problem if you do not admit it exists, she said.

Wish also advises reconnecting with faraway family and friends through letters and avoiding alcohol to drown your sorrows because that could lead to worse problems, like getting sick or fighting.

Lastly, Wish said it is unwise to rush into a relationship or sexual tryst to cover loneliness.

“When your desperation meter is running, you don’t read people accurately,” she said. “Your vision is clouded by your emotional needs.”

Social workers help clients deal with grief, loss and other issues. To learn more visit the National Association of Social Workers’ “Help Starts Here” Mind and Spirit website.

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