Holidays can be a fun time of celebrations, family, friends, and cheer for many! Yet for others, the holidays can bring sadness, a depressed mood, fear, guilt, stress, and even anxiety. Holidays can be difficult for a number of reasons. Maybe you have to deal with difficult family members. Maybe your mom or dad get a little edgy with planning and preparing to have company. Or maybe you don’t like the chaos of being around all your extended family.
Ten Tips to Ease Holiday Stress
It is normal for the holidays to bring stress, but there are tips that can help ease your tension, and even help you to come to enjoy the holidays.
- Acknowledge how you are feeling: Try to identify what emotions you are feeling without judgment. Sometimes acknowledging to yourself you are feeling sad or anxious can help to relieve the uncertainty of why you feel the way you do.
- Reach out: Talk to a friend or family member about how you are feeling. Sometimes a listening ear can help you to process and vent your emotions and thoughts about the approaching holidays.
- Be Realistic: Holidays with families do not always look like they do on the tv holiday movies. Try not to set your expectations too high for what you believe your holiday should look like. Enjoy the small moments of being together with others. Try not to over-focus on the negatives that may happen during the day.
- Try to set aside differences: This can be hard, especially when that one uncle always has to bring up politics at the family holiday table. Be encouraged to feel entitled to your own opinions. Yet try not to get offended or angry when a family member brings up an opposing view. Consider excusing yourself from the table or room and take a walk or break to calm down.
- Plan ahead: Do your holiday shopping or cleaning early to prevent unnecessary stress. Plan your attire ahead of time to ensure you will not be stressed about what to wear the day of the event. Consider asking a parent or family member what the plans are so you can plan ahead.
- Stick to a budget: Money does not always buy happiness. Try to ask your family members to agree on a budget for each person. If you cannot afford gifts for your friends or family consider spending time with them, or making them something homemade instead.
- Use good self-care: Remember to take time to take care of yourself. Eat healthily, take a walk, use a face mask, get your nails done. Do something to make yourself feel good. Remember the basics of healthy eating, sleep, limited technology time, and time management.
- Gratitude: Consider journaling or telling a friend or family member what you appreciate about them and other things in your life. Something can be said for counting your blessings or positives in your life to help you balance out the negative thoughts you may have.
- Remembrance: If the holidays are difficult because of the loss of a loved one, try not to dismiss your feelings. Know that its normal to miss them more around the holidays. Remember happy memories and share them with a trusted person. Consider doing something in their honor. You could hang an ornament for them, eat their favorite dessert, or watch their favorite holiday movie.
- Turn the mind: Remember to affirm to yourself that you can get through the holidays and that in the big picture each is only one day a year. Try to enjoy the small moments and remind yourself “This too shall pass.”
You will Feel More in Charge of Your Emotions
The holidays do not have to be feared, but with the above tips they can be tolerated and eased. With practice, you will feel more in charge of your emotions when the holidays approach. If you would like additional support, talk to your therapist or doctor. Sometimes medication during this time of year can be beneficial to help ease depression and anxiety.
