W: It’s your birthday next week. What have you got planned?
M: I’m not sure. I often feel strange on my birthday. It’s like my brain decides to have a crisis.
W: It’s not entirely unusual to feel anxious or sad around your birthday. Birthdays can tap into a lot of things people worry about, including their achievements in life in the past decade, or their accomplishments of the past year. Many begin to search for the meaning of their existence, leading to behaviors such as ending or starting a relationship, or plans, like starting a vigorous diet or fitness program.
M: I have wonderful friends and I love celebrating their birthdays. But I don’t like being the center of attention, receiving gifts and having a fuss made. It seems to trigger a type of social anxiety. I think social media too can intensify things as birthdays now play out more publicly. Birthday reminders can be helpful, but I kind of worry I won’t be able to drum up my own day and show it to look as exciting as it is supposed to be.
W: Well, to deal with the birthday blues, you should not isolate yourself. It’s best to gradually face your birthday with people you trust. That would help you learn self-acceptance, or that it’s okay to be the focus.
M: Perhaps. Or I could perceive my birthday as an opportunity to do something for others like asking people to make a donation instead of buying a gift.
W: Exactly. Or even simply see your birthday as an opportunity to bring people together for them to have fun.