True, any holiday creates stress, angst, depression & the list could go on. It is almost to the point where people feel like they are "expected" to perform to some degree.
Alas, this magazine should have conducted an equal study from the opposite end of the spectrum by asking over 1,100 grandparents. I am a grandparent now so I have a little more insight into this end of the spectrum. Yes, to a degree I "lavish" my grandchild because I see the selfishness of her parents spending their money on themselves instead of on their child. This is just my (single) experience & as such is just one of millions.
I can state in the same breath that (thankfully) Christmas is still a happy time of year around my family. No fights.
A Time of Peace?
“Christmas is one of our greatest festivals,” but it is also “a time of conflicts,” states Vi Föräldrar, a Swedish magazine for parents. In fact, at Christmastime, families “quarrel and wrangle more than at any other time of the year.” The magazine asked over 1,100 parents of small children about their experiences during the holiday season. Some 88 percent answered that the family quarrels over “how and where to celebrate Christmas.” Many are irritated because grandparents spoil their grandchildren with candy and unneeded gifts.