By Olga Zilberberg

Olga Zilberberg is the founder of The Missing Link A mental health an Neuroinclusion Consultancy firm. To celebrate the launch of their new guide Creating Neuro-affirmative Festive Celebrations, Olga has written a blog post for us.

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If your inbox had a soundtrack right now, it would probably be Mariah Carey.

Invites, “save the dates”, Secret Santa reminders, venue confirmations – the festive season at
work has officially begun.

But here’s the question fewer organisations are asking:
Festive for who?

For some of your people, the office party, the noise, the lights and the late nights are
genuinely fun.

For many neurodivergent employees – and those managing anxiety, depression or sensory
sensitivities – the same events can be overwhelming, exhausting, or actively harmful.

A month of loud, crowded, alcoholheavy celebrations, you can see why the socalled “most
wonderful time of the year” is, for many, the hardest

The timing matters.

Right now, your events are being booked, menus chosen, comms drafted and expectations
quietly set.

You’re in the window where small changes can make a big difference to whether
neurodivergent colleagues:

• Feel able to participate
• Spend days recovering from one evening
• Or avoid everything and feel judged for it

A neuroinclusive festive season doesn’t mean cancelling joy.
It means redesigning how you celebrate so fewer people are left out, overwhelmed, or silently
struggling.

This is also a strategic business decision, not just a nice gesture.

We know that:

• Highly engaged teams are associated with 21% higher profitability and 17% higher
  productivity (Gallup).
• UK studies on mental health at work consistently show an average £4–£5 return for
  every £1 invested in mental health and wellbeing, through reduced absence,
  presenteeism and turnover.

By making your celebrations more neuroaffirming, you are:

• Protecting your investment in people
• Reducing the risk of stressrelated absence in January
• Strengthening psychological safety – a key driver of performance and innovation

The emotional ROI is just as important:

• Neurodivergent and mentally struggling colleagues feel seen and respected, rather
  than “too sensitive” or “no fun”.
• Teams feel more connected, because more people can safely opt in.
• Employees feel valued as humans, not just expected to perform enthusiasm on
  demand.

So what does a neuroinclusive festive season look like in practice?

From our guide Creating NeuroAffirming Festive Celebrations, some highimpact shifts
include:

• Genuinely optional events – no penalties, subtle or otherwise, for not attending.
• Sensoryfriendly environments – softer lighting, lower volume, quiet rooms and
  clear exits.
• Less social pressure – smaller gatherings, structured activities, no forced fun or
  public “performances”.
• Rethinking alcohol – equal, appealing nonalcoholic options and no “Why aren’t you
  drinking?” culture.
• Predictability – clear information 2–3 weeks ahead: timings, venue, dress code,
  activities, food.

None of this removes the celebration.
It removes the barriers to participation.

At The Missing Link, we specialise in mental health and neuroinclusion training that helps
organisations design workplaces – and festive seasons – where different brains can thrive.

We can support you to:

• Review your current festive plans through a neuroinclusive lens
• Cocreate alternative, lowerpressure celebration options
• Train leaders and managers to model neuroaffirming behaviours

If you’d like this year’s celebrations to feel safer, kinder and more genuinely inclusive, we’d
love to help.

Visit www.themissinglink.org.uk or email Olga at olga@themissinglink.org.uk to talk about
making your festive season truly neuroinclusive.