4 Tips to Relieve Holiday Stress
Ah the Christmas season! Ideally, it’s a time of year for enjoying holiday parties, delicious food, the exchanging of gifts, holiday movies, and family togetherness. But in reality, the holidays can bring some less-than-magical feelings. A time of the year reserved for celebrating the birth of our Savior is oftentimes ravaged with stress instead. This scenario has been depicted in many a Christmas movie: crowded stores, long lines, overcooked turkeys, family chaos.
It can be hard to keep it all together under the mounting pressure of decorating, cooking, entertaining, and endless shopping lists! However, with the proper tools, you too can make it through the holiday season with your sanity intact.
Read on for a few tips on how to survive this year’s holidays!
- An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.
Making lists and prioritizing tasks keeps most of us on track and working towards our goals, while allowing us to avoid distractions along the way. Having an idea of what we are up against helps us to avoid undesired situations, and prepares us to face the inevitable.
This year, try to take some time to write out a game plan for yourself. Think meal preparation, a chore list with tasks delegated for family members, an ideal daily schedule to follow, etc. If you have a plan to deal with the inevitable stressors, you stand a fighting chance of making it to the New Year without throwing any turkeys out the window. - Know your stressors.
We all have things that set us off or trigger our stress response. Identifying and anticipating those particular things that accelerate your stress can help you make the most of your holiday celebrations.
Consider how some of those holiday stressors might be avoided. For instance, I find that when I communicate my pet peeves to my family, they make an effort to respect my boundaries – which comes in handy at major family gatherings. Maybe there are certain circumstances that tend to trigger your anxiety. Being aware of what those are, and then making a plan outlining specific actions you can take to help decrease your anxiety will be beneficial.
Know that other stressors are unavoidable. Magically changing situations outside of our control or controlling the obnoxious things a well-intentioned relative says to us (as much as we may like to!) is impossible. However, anticipating those potential triggers and having a plan for how to handle them can make them much easier to deal with. - Exercise.
This is not about working off that extra serving of pumpkin pie but rather about giving your body more of what helps it feel good. at Therapy Solutions, we are here to provide support to you, every step along the way.
To quote the the movie Legally Blonde, the main character, Elle Woods, says “Exercise gives you endorphins. Endorphins make you happy. Happy people just don’t shoot their husbands, they just don’t!”
Turns out, Elle was right. Exercise boosts the level of feel-good chemicals in your brain (endorphins). Plus, concentrating on your body’s movement is also a great way to free your mind from the shackles of your holiday check list. Getting your body in motion is also an excellent way to relieve it of some of the tension racked up over the course of the holidays. - Take some space (and some grace!)
In a busy house it can be hard to find a prayerful place, but it’s incredibly important to be able to step away from the football games, activity planning, shopping, and clearing of dishes in order to take care of yourself.
Carve out time to be still. If you are faithful, carve out time with God, to engage in some form of prayer. Pray for your family and the grace to be present with them. Take time to sit in silence and gather your thoughts. Check in with your body to see if you are holding any stress. Check in with your body to be curious if you are holding on to any feelings. Be aware of emotions and sensations in your body so you can name them to tame them.
We will be happy to meet with you and create a treatment plan for your journey toward health, healing, and pain relief. If you are in the Dickinson, Killdeer, and Richardton, ND area, or any of the surrounding areas, and you are looking for physical relief or mental health assistance, look no further. Therapy Solutions is here to help as one of the most favored providers!
Article from: Catholic Counselors