The scripts are available for printing and for sound bite identification.

Go to http://www.wichita.edu/newsline to get the current Wichita State University Newsline. If you cannot access the Newsline at the Web address above, contact Joe Kleinsasser at (316) 978-3013 or joe.kleinsasser@wichita.edu. Newsline cuts may be edited to suit your needs. If you have additional questions for Greg Buell after listening to the WSU Newsline, please call him at (316) 978-3440 or greg.buell@wichita.edu.

Background:
After enjoying holiday festivities, it's not uncommon to experience an emotional letdown. Wichita State University psychologist Greg Buell offers some thoughts on why a post-holiday letdown is so common and how to avoid it.

Voice wrap:
Announcer: The holiday season is similar to taking a great vacation — it's a euphoric time that is all too fleeting, as Wichita State University psychologist Greg Buell explains.

Buell: "Part of the buildup is family rituals, customs, things that we do like decorating, special foods, special gatherings. Holidays are awesome."

Announcer: Of course, what goes up — our emotional high — must come down, and the end result is frequently a post-holiday letdown. Buell says the best way to avoid a major letdown is to moderate expectations. He says it helps if you can be realistic and remember the meaning of the gathering and the celebration season. This is Joe Kleinsasser at Wichita State University.

Sound bite #1
Buell explains why we often experience a post-holiday letdown. The sound bite is 11 seconds and the outcue is "natural drop off."

Buell: "I think the best way to explain a letdown around the holidays is a natural buildup of expectations. Occasionally they get out of line. We set them too high and so there's a natural drop-off."

Sound bite #2
Buell gives another reason for a holiday letdown. The sound bite is 16 seconds and the outcue is "too extravagant."

Buell: "Another possible explanation for the letdown is that we do have to pay the piper. Some of us make choices as we head into the holiday season in terms of perhaps overdoing it — be it food, be it money, or in other ways we get too extravagant."

Sound bite #3
Buell says our holiday festivities don't always go as planned. The sound bite is 10 seconds and the outcue is "come off perfectly."
Buell: "Too often, the holiday season didn't quite go the way our Norman Rockwell imagination had constructed it. Everything didn't come off perfectly."

Sound bite #4
Buell says the letdown after the holidays is not unlike the grief process. The sound bite is 10 seconds and the outcue is "back to school."

Buell: "In a way, it's not unlike grief. Reality sets in. There's the loss of the process of getting ready, but then it's back to the grind, back to work or back to school."

Sound bite #5
Buell says even in the best of circumstances, a letdown is to be expected. The sound bite is 15 seconds and the outcue is "let go of that."

Buell: "You know, even if things came off perfectly, there is a drop-off — the process of getting ready, the buildup, the fun of being joyful and planning to have a good time with others. It's hard to let go of that."

Sound bite #6
Buell says the best way to avoid a big letdown is to moderate expectations. The sound bite is 12 seconds and the outcue is "that helps."

Buell: "A special way to avoid a big letdown would be to moderate expectations. If you can help folks get realistic and remember the meaning of the gathering and the celebration season, that helps."