You Don’t "Have To" End The Year With A Bang

ABC of Mental Health

Author

Shiromi Chaturvedi
December 25, 2025

Hello! Welcome to another edition of ABC of Mental Health, your partner in the journey to better mental health, one newsletter at a time.

As the year winds down, everywhere you look, people are talking about “finishing strong,” “ending with a bang,” or squeezing out one last burst of productivity. But maybe this year wasn’t about fireworks for you. Maybe it was about surviving, healing, learning boundaries, or simply making it through. This edition is a gentle reminder that you don’t need a dramatic finale to feel proud of yourself.

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One relevant recommendation:

A Gentle Year-End Reflection (10-Minute activity): You don’t need a reinvention. Sometimes all you need is gentleness.

Instead of forcing big goals or dramatic resolutions, try this softer, grounding practice. Come back to it as often as you’d like through the year :))

Two Quotes on Rest & Inner Strength:

Author Mary Anne Radmacher reminds us that quiet courage is still courage:

“Sometimes courage is the quiet voice at the end of the day saying, ‘I will try again tomorrow.’”

Poet Morgan Harper Nichols speaks to the beauty of slow growth:

“You do not have to make noise to make progress. Let your quiet work be enough.”

Three TherapyShorts from TST

  1. Slow Endings Are Still Endings
    A client once said, “Everyone keeps asking me what I’m doing for New Year’s, and I don’t even know how I survived this year.” Not every year ends with clarity or celebration. Some end with exhaustion, grief, or quiet relief. Slowing down at the end of the year doesn’t mean you wasted it—it means your body and mind are asking for rest. Healing years often don’t look impressive from the outside. If this year taught you how to pause, say no, or stay afloat, that’s still an ending worth honouring.

  2. You Don’t Have to Outperform Your Past Self

    Many people enter therapy in December saying, “I should be doing better by now.” But growth doesn’t always look like progress charts or big wins. One client described this year as “unproductive” because they didn’t hit career goals but in the same breath shared they finally stopped people-pleasing and started setting boundaries. That’s growth too. Some years aren’t about becoming more; they’re about shedding what was hurting you. You’re not behind, you’re just evolving quietly.

  3. Rest Is Not a Pause, It’s Preparation
    A recurring theme in sessions this time of year is guilt around rest: “If I slow down now, I’ll lose momentum.” But the nervous system doesn’t work on deadlines. One person shared that once they allowed themselves to rest in December, no forced goals, no pressure their clarity returned naturally in January. Rest isn’t quitting; it’s recalibrating. Ending the year rested isn’t giving up on yourself, it's choosing sustainability over burnout.

A QUICK QUESTION…

As you end the year, what do you need most? Vote here!

Last week, we asked you what winter ritual feels most comforting right now, and the responses were… (drumroll please)…

With care and compassion,

The Social Therapist

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