Every January 1, we exclaim cheers for a “fresh start” — but for many of us, that day brings crushing loneliness or worse. Studies show that suicide rates spike on New Year’s Day, shattering the myth that it’s a day of celebration for everyone. New Year’s can feel like a harsh spotlight, illuminating feelings of failure, hopelessness, or, in the case of bipolar disorder, treatment failure. The risk of suicide can increase around this time as the weight of expectations and the pressure to “turn the page” becomes overwhelming.

Here’s the hidden truth: New Year’s Day is just another day. It doesn’t define your worth, your progress, or your future. If you’re struggling right now, you’re not alone, and there’s hope — even if it feels impossible to see. Let’s explore why New Year’s can be so difficult, how to find light in the darkest moments, and what steps you can take to heal in January and beyond.

Why New Year’s Day Feels So Hard: Understanding the Emotional Weight

New Year’s can be seen as a great and positive time, but it just doesn’t feel like that for everyone. If you look back at the last year and see what you consider failure and pain, you might conclude that the new year will bring more of the same, which can be horrifying. I’ve been there, I’ve thought that. I’ve looked into the new year and seen a mirror of the last hated year. There’s no celebration there. And let’s be real — sometimes the new year does bring more of the same, whether you like it or not. Of course, this can breed feelings of suicide for some and worsen feelings of suicide for those already suicidal.

How Bipolar Disorder Magnifies the Struggles of New Year’s Day

And that’s part of why New Year’s can feel hard if you have bipolar disorder — you know you will continue to have bipolar disorder in the new year. The overall narrative of New Year’s is this notion of “turning the page.” The problem with bipolar disorder is that it’s the same damn page. I’m not saying your next year can’t be better than your last, but when you have bipolar disorder, it’s not as simple as just making a New Year’s resolution to eat more broccoli and things getting better.

Not to mention the fact that there’s cultural pressure to make the new year something fresh and new. But bipolar disorder doesn’t allow that. All that pressure does is make people feel worse about the fact that January 1 is not the start of anything but rather the continuation of a disease that is trying to kill you. Talk about a depressing realization. And depressing realizations can, quite understandably, lead to increased suicide risk on New Year’s for those with bipolar disorder.

The Pressure to Start Over: How New Year’s Resolutions Can Harm Mental Health

That pressure to start over can get to anyone’s mental health around the holidays. You might be distressed over struggling with a divorce. The new year may still bring more struggle. You might stressed out over trouble at work. The new year might bring more difficulty. The new year means nothing to so many people because the “new year” is just another page in a book, and if the book you’re reading is painful and awful, that “new page” just brings more of the same, no matter what your new year’s resolution might be.

The idea that you can suddenly change your life just by using willpower is a myth. Making a New Year’s resolution can harm your mental health over the holidays instead of helping it when you fail to change your life overnight, even when this failure is predictable.

New Year’s Suicide Risk: What the Latest Studies Reveal

Recently, two studies have come out that have verified that suicides decrease over Christmas and other national holidays in most countries, but suicide increases on New Year’s Day in all countries. This goes against many people’s intuition, but I believe it is related to two things: not wanting to ruin a holiday for others and the pressure of New Year’s representing change.

The study “Association of holidays and the day of the week with suicide risk: multicountry, two stage, time series study” found that:

  • Mondays had peak suicide risk among weekdays in all countries
  • The weekends usually had the lowest suicide risk
  • The risk of suicide was generally decreased on holidays but increased one or two days after the holidays
  • There were strong increases in suicide risk on New Year’s Day

A second recent study echoed some of these findings. “Temporal patterns of Veteran suicide: Variation by season, day of the week, and holidays” found that:

  • Veteran suicides increase in the summer months, and on Mondays
  • Veteran suicide risk was generally lower on holidays other than New Year’s Day
  • Veteran suicides increase on New Year’s Day, particularly among Veterans 25-34 years old
  • Holiday effects were most present among men

So, if you’re feeling an increase in depression or an increase in suicidal feelings right now, you’re not alone. Many of us have been there.

Why January 1st Is Just Another Day — That’s Okay

New Year’s Day is just another day — it doesn’t have to define your future. Healing starts when you reach out. Every day is a chance to begin again.

In spite of the cultural pressure and the pressure we may put on ourselves to change or “fix” things on New Year’s, January 1st really is just another day, and that’s okay. No one needs an artificial starting line to tell us when or what to change, and we especially don’t need the pressure that comes with it. If you want to make changes in your life, do it on any day you choose, but understand that there is no magic day that will change the suffering you may be experiencing. That suffering might be there December 31st, January 1st, and beyond, but that doesn’t mean all hope is lost.

How to Find Hope and Start Healing This January

If you want to decrease your mental health suffering this January, suicide is not the answer. Here are some simple suicide prevention tips for January you can follow to try and start the healing process:

  • Reach out on New Year’s. Don’t spend New Year’s alone; spend it with people who care about you, or spend it by reaching out to a professional or a helpline if you need to. There is no shame in saying that New Year’s is a hard day for you.
  • Reach out for professional help. If you’re feeling down on New Year’s because of ongoing mental health suffering, reach out for professional help. This might be your family doctor, a psychiatrist, or a psychotherapist. The point is that if your pain is ongoing, you need help to turn things around. (You might also need to change professionals if the ones you have aren’t helping.)
  • Stop drinking and using drugs. Drugs will not help your mental health. Alcohol, for example, is a depressive and thus can make depression worse. While substances may feel like useful coping techniques, they produce short-term relief and long-term suffering. Remember, you may need medical help to stop using substances, and that’s okay.
  • Work on self-improvement slowly. Whatever your pain may be, there are resources out there to help you. I suggest browsing books to see what makes sense regarding your situation. I particularly recommend workbooks as they can lead you through a healing process if you can’t afford to do that with a professional.
  • Focus on evidence-based help. Don’t fall into the trap of using crystals, unproven supplements, etc., to try and ameliorate your suffering. Focus on being guided by mental health professionals or tools that have scientific backing. (For example, most mental health apps have no scientific backing. If you want to use one, choose one that does. Similarly, choose books written by recognized experts.)

In short, you can focus on healing this January if you choose to, but please don’t feel pressured to create sudden change. Change happens gradually when your problems are very painful. And please don’t be a statistic about New Year’s and suicide — reach out.

How to Support Someone Struggling with Suicidal Thoughts This New Year

Another important part of this is helping those around you who may be suicidal around New Year’s. It costs nothing to check in with your loved ones, and if they aren’t the type to reach out, your checking in can actually save a life. I’ve written two pieces about helping someone struggling with suicidal thoughts. You can find them here and here. No matter what, though, it’s your personal connection that can make all the difference.

Hope Beyond the Calendar: Every Day Is a Chance to Begin Again and Fight Suicide

As I keep saying, January 1st is just another day. That means if you’re in pain right now, there is no reason you can’t start fighting it right now. Don’t wait for an arbitrary day to try and get relief. Every day is a chance to start the healing process and decrease your pain.

Remember, if this time of year is making you feel worse, you’re not alone. But don’t let an arbitrary date on the calendar defeat you. Reach out. Get help. Start healing. You’ve got this — any day.

(A thank-you to Chris Aiken, MD, for bringing this research forward.)