How does christmas music affect your mood?

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Honestly, Christmas music is like torture to my ears. I remember a time (when I was at school) where I was in the main hall and Christmas music was playing through the speakers. Everyone else was dancing wildly, but I was the only one that just stood there in the corner feeling awkward for a minute hoping they would turn it off. They didn't, so I left.

It makes me anxious - a sort of free-floating, nagging buzz in the stomach kind.

When I was a child I would become more and more anxious as Xmas day approached as I picked up on the hype - I experience excitement negatively so by Xmas Eve I would not be able to enjoy any of it and would toss and turn until it was time to get up and do the presents thing - this was a relief not a joy though.

I gave up on the presents years ago and can just about take the "humbug" and "scrooge" retorts that people trot out with monotonous regularity.

Being that I am a professed Heathen this time of year is very important to me as it is the festival of Yule and I do celebrate that.

I don't care for Christmas music; it's irritating. It reminds me of my shortcomings. I want to throw the radio into the sea when I hear Christmas music, and see the electrical sparks bought on by this action.

I can't deny the pleasure of Christmas music to others, though.

Between chorale performances and caroling, I've been singing Christmas music all month. I love good Christmas music. I hate Christmas schlock. Oddly enough, this year, I won't be singing anywhere on Christmas Eve.

We keep Vince Guaraldi's Charlie Brown X-Mas album rotating during this time of year. It makes me happy.

^^^
yeh, vince guaraldi [RIP] had a certain happy magic about his music, but could also be magisterial when he needed to be.

A non-Christian here, but only a small number of XMAS tracks really bother me.
My top five annoying list would include
1. The Jingle Dogs (oof-oof-oof)
2. Granma got run over by a reindeer
3. That stupid overplayed Boston Pops instrumental of "Sleigh Ride", although I like vocal versions.
4. Chestnuts roasting on an open fire (although I enjoy Bob Rivers' parody called "Chipmunks roasting...")
5. Little Drummer Boy (what moron wound bang on a drum in front of a newborn baby?)

FWIW, the Guaraldi album mentioned above is one of my all-time holliday favourites.

I'm very much an over-sized child living in an adult's body, so Christmas is always quite an exciting time for me. Unfortunately though, I am very calorie conscious and gain weight with ease, so it can be a rather stressing time, too.

^^^mee too.

Christmas is waaaay stressful for me, even when I was a kid. I can barely leave the house without having sensory overload; stores (and MALLS) are the worst. I'm thankful for online shopping. My fiance has been so helpful this year- I haven't answered the phone in a couple weeks, which has really helped me out.

We're taking the train to see my brother's family; the layover at Union Station is always complete chaos, but at least no one notices if I get snippy and rude, because it's freaking Chicago's Union Station and everyone is acting like a jerk anyway.

My main coping strategy with big family get-togethers has always been that my dad, who is probably also autistic but un-diagnosed, always sneaks away, too. We usually just quietly watch TV together or read Scientific American Magazine and talk about stuff that actually interests us. Sometimes I feel like I get migraines from making my "OH REALLY, HOW INTERESTING" face. The fiance is neuro-typical, but also gets tired of people, so he's part of the club now. This has always been harder for me than for male relatives in my family, because everyone expects women to play hostess and participate in every freaking thing that happens; I didn't sign up for that, and I don't enjoy it. My sister-in-law, who is not a bad person, but extremely energetic and "people-pleasing" (but you know, not if that person is me or my fiance, haha) likes to use phrases like "Don't you want to...." or "Don't you think that..." or "Wouldn't it be fun if...." and I'm over here like "If I wanted to do that, I probably would have".

My favorite Christmas traditions are incidental and have little to do with Christmas; since I'm going to university far from home, my husband and I get Dim Sum and go to a Natural History Museum or a Planetarium, which we both enjoy, either in the city we're to which we're travelling to see family (on year Philly, this year Cleveland) or if we have the long layover in Chicago.

This is my first Christmas where I am close to having a diagnosis; it was only this year (I'm 25) that my psychologist/therapist for ADHD and I talked about my "social anxiety" probably being ASD (I get an actual ASD screening in February, but I know what the results will say). Just having learned so much through adult and women aspies through their advocacy has helped so much- for example, knowing that I am going through sensory overload and not having panic attacks is a huge step. So thanks to all you lovely people who share your experiences here and elsewhere, and thanks for reading mine

It makes me feel all warm and fuzzy inside, like a Sweet Pea.