Over the Christmas period, the focus is on being together, which makes any empty chairs impossible to ignore, no matter how long ago the loss. As with last year, as a nation, some of us may also spend a moment to remember Queen Elizabeth II during King Charles’ annual address. Her death was grieved all over the world, and it also served as a trigger to those of us who have lost our own mothers, grandmothers or other close family and friends.
That’s the thing about Christmas: it evokes something at a very emotional level in all of us, says mental health expert Christopher Spriggs, author of (£9.99, Vie). ‘It’s usually very family-focused
