Giving Yourself Grace to Hold Both the Good and the Hard During the Holidays

The holidays have a way of bringing out every emotion imaginable. One moment you’re smiling because the Christmas lights feel magical, and the next moment your heart feels tight, unsure of why you suddenly want to cry. You may be excited about traditions… yet exhausted. Grateful… yet grieving something deeply. Looking forward to your kids being home… yet overwhelmed by the mental load.

And Mama—if that’s you?
I want you to hear me clearly:

Nothing is wrong with you.

This season stirs up all the feelings, especially for moms carrying so much. If you’re a working mom, raising teens, with a child in college, experiencing grief, or simply trying to keep up, this blog is for you.

Here’s the key message: You are allowed to feel multiple emotions this holiday season. You don't need to choose just one. Your heart can hold both joy and sadness at the same time.

This is the kind of emotional permission so many moms desperately need but rarely receive.

Motherhood During the Holidays Isn’t One-Dimensional

Every mom knows the holidays don’t feel the same every year. And honestly? They don’t feel the same from one day to the next. Some years feel light, fun, and full of excitement. Other years feel heavy, tender, emotional, or confusing.

And most years? It’s a mixture of everything. You can:

✨ Smile at the decorations
✨ Feel grateful for your family
✨ Enjoy traditions you created
✨ Relish having your children under one roof

And still…

💛 Miss the way things used to be
💛 Grieve the people or seasons you’ve lost
💛 Feel overwhelmed by responsibilities
💛 Long for a break you haven’t had
💛 Or simply feel the weight of change

As a mom, you carry memories, hopes, stress, responsibilities, dreams, and the reality of your children growing up. The holidays highlight all of it.

That doesn’t make you dramatic.
That doesn’t make you ungrateful.
That doesn’t make you “emotional” or “too much.”

It makes you human. It makes you a mom.

The Emotional Reality of the Season: Why It Hits Moms Differently

Most moms don’t talk about how emotionally layered this season can be. But if we’re honest, motherhood during the holidays often asks us to stretch in ways we don’t even realize.

You’re managing everyone’s experience.

Gifts, schedules, dinners, shopping, coordinating—making everything special takes energy, even when you love it.

You’re carrying emotional memories

The first Christmas without someone you love.
The first time your child doesn’t come home.
The first holiday in a new season of life.
The first year a tradition changes.

These things matter.

You’re trying to create magic… while battling your own exhaustion

You pour into everyone else, and by the end of the day, you’re running on fumes.

You’re physically tired.

The holidays bring late nights, long to-do lists, and more responsibilities than usual.

You’re mentally overstimulated.

Noise, gatherings, decisions, events, and planning overwhelm the nervous system.

You’re spiritually seeking peace.

Your heart wants quiet moments with God, but your life feels too full to slow down.

All of these emotional layers are real—and they don’t cancel each other out. They coexist. And Mama, you are allowed to feel all of it.

You Can Hold Joy and Grief at the Same Time

This is one of the greatest lessons I’ve learned in motherhood:

I don’t have to force myself into one emotion at a time.

I can be genuinely happy AND still feel something heavy.

I can celebrate AND miss what used to be.

I can enjoy my family AND feel overwhelmed by everything on my plate.

I can be grateful AND exhausted.

Holding two truths at once doesn’t make you unstable. It makes you emotionally aware.

God created our hearts to feel deeply. He created us to love hard. And He meets us in both the good and the hard.

Scripture never said to “pretend everything is okay.” It says: “Cast all your cares on Him, for He cares for you.” (1 Peter 5:7)
Not just the happy ones.
Not just the simple ones.
Not just the ones you feel comfortable admitting.

ALL OF THEM.

Making Space for Your Feelings Is a Form of Strength

Moms tend to bury their emotions because they don’t want to ruin the holiday spirit or bring down the mood. But hiding what you feel actually makes it heavier.

Let me encourage you today:

💛 It’s okay to take a moment for yourself.
💛 It’s okay to step outside and breathe deeply.
💛 It’s okay to cry in the car for a minute.
💛 It’s okay to tell someone you’re overwhelmed.
💛 It’s okay not to have the perfect Christmas.
💛 It’s okay to feel the ache of change.

When you acknowledge your feelings, you give your heart space to breathe.
You show your children that emotions are healthy.
And you allow God to meet you in your honesty.

God Meets You in Both—The Light and the Heavy

One of the most comforting truths I hold onto is this:

God can handle our emotions.
He meets us in the messy middle.
In the joy and the grief.
In the excitement and the overwhelm.
In the gratitude and the ache.

You don’t have to choose.
You don’t have to hurry up and “fix” your mood.
You don’t have to hide your heart from the One who created it.

This season, let God meet you right where you are.

A Final Encouragement for Every Mama This Season

Mama, no matter what your holidays look like this year—full house, quiet house, blended families, new traditions, shifting seasons, or tender memories—your feelings matter.

It’s okay to:

✨ Feel deeply
✨ Miss deeply
✨ Love deeply
✨ And need support deeply

And if this season feels heavier than you expected, I want you to know:

You don’t have to carry it alone.
You deserve support.
You deserve space to breathe.
You deserve a soft place to land.

If You Need Support This Season, I’m Here

If the holidays are bringing up emotions you weren’t prepared for—grief, overwhelm, anxiety, change, or just the weight of motherhood—I would be honored to walk this journey with you. You don’t have to navigate the season alone.

Click here to read more of Karen’s story in Voyage Magazine.