The holidays often bring a mix of joy, nostalgia, and connection, but they can also stir up something we do not talk about nearly enough: comparison. Even when we know better, this season can make us hold our lives up against someone else’s and wonder if we are doing enough.

If you have found yourself in comparison mode this holiday season, you are not alone. But the more we acknowledge it, the more room we create to choose compassion instead of criticism, connection instead of pressure, and values instead of expectation.

Comparing Ourselves on Social Media

You're lying in bed scrolling social media and you see post after post with your friends and their families in matching pajamas, hosting elaborate holiday parties, with their beautifully lit trees and curated home decor and you feel the increasing tension in your chest of shame and comparison. You wonder "Why doesn't my home look like that? Where do they get the time or money for that? Why can't I keep up?"

When we compar...