Welcome to the holiday season—that whirlwind of gift-giving
holidays, marketing blitzes, holiday parties, and activities galore that begins
right after Halloween, builds to Thanksgiving and continues gaining
momentum through the end of the year.
While this season is
meant to bring feelings of love and cheer, it’s also the harbinger of holiday
stress for many. In fact, according to a poll conducted on this site, more than
80% of us find the holiday season to be ‘somewhat’ or ‘very’ stressful—that ranks
navigating the holidays right up there with asking for a raise! What is it that
has us all so hot and bothered?
Doing too Much
All things in
moderation, as the saying goes. The problem with the holiday season is that we
often experience too much of a good thing. While stress itself is necessary for
our survival and zest for life (researchers call this positive type of stress
"eustress"), too much stress has a negative impact on our health, both mental and
physical. Too many activities, even if they are fun activities, can culminate
in too much holiday stress and leave us feeling frazzled, rather than
fulfilled.
Eating, Drinking, and Spending too Much
An overabundance of
parties and gift-giving occasions lead many people to eat, drink and be
merry—often to excess. The temptation to overindulge in spending, rich desserts
or alcohol can cause many people the lasting stress of dealing with consequences
(debt, weight gain, memories of embarrassing behavior) that can linger long
after the season is over. Also, in these more difficult financial times,
finding affordable gifts can be stressful in itself, and carrying holiday debt
is a tradition that too many people unwittingly bring on themselves, and the
stress that comes with it can last for months.
Too Much Togetherness
The holidays are a
time when extended families tend to gather. While this can be a wonderful
thing, even the most close-knit families can overdose on togetherness, making
it hard for family members to maintain a healthy balance between bonding and
alone time. Many families also have roles that each member falls into that have
more to do with who individuals used to be rather than who they are today,
which can sometimes bring more dread than love to these gatherings.
Not Enough Togetherness
For those who don’t
have these family issues, loneliness can be just as much of a problem. As the
world seems to be gathering with family, those who rely more on friends for
support can feel deserted and alone.
Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD)
An often unrecognized
problem that comes with the holiday season is actually a by-product of the
seasons changing from fall to winter. As daylight diminishes and the weather
causes many of us to spend more time indoors, many people are affected to some
degree by a type of depression known as seasonal affective disorder. It’s a
subtle but very real condition that can cast a pall over the whole season
and be a source of stress and unhappiness during a time that people expect to
feel just the opposite.
Minimizing Holiday Stress
The great thing about
holiday stress is that it’s predictable. Unlike many other types of negative
stress we encounter in life, we know when holiday stress will begin and end,
and we can make plans to reduce the amount of stress we experience and the
negative impact it has on us.
Here are some tips you
can try to help reduce holiday stress before it begins so that it remains at a
positive level, rather than an overwhelming one.
Set Your Priorities
Before you get
overwhelmed by too many activities, it’s important to decide what traditions
offer the most positive impact and eliminate superfluous activities. For
example, if you usually become overwhelmed by a flurry of baking, caroling,
shopping, sending cards, visiting relatives and other activities that leave you
exhausted by January, you may want to examine your priorities, pick a few favorite
activities and really enjoy them, while skipping the rest.
Take Shortcuts
If you can’t fathom
the idea of skipping out on sending cards, baking, seeing people, and
doing all of the stuff that usually runs you ragged, you
may do better including all of these activities in your schedule, but on
a smaller scale.
Send cards, for
example, but only to those with whom you maintain regular communication. Or,
don’t include a personal note or letter in each one. Find a way to simplify.
The same goes for the baking—will anyone be enraged if you buy baked goods from
the bakery instead? If you find ways to cut corners or tone down the activities
that are important to you and your family, you may enjoy them much more.
Be Smart With Holiday Eating
During the holidays,
we may want to look and feel great (especially if we're around people we don't
see often—we know that this is how we'll be remembered), but there is so much
temptation in the form of delicious food and decadent desserts, and a break
from our regular routines—plus the addition of emotional stress—can all add up
to overeating, emotional eating, and other forms of unhealthy eating. This
year, plan ahead by being aware of your triggers, do what you can to have some
healthy food at hand for each meal, be aware of your intake, and practice
mindful eating. The resource below will provide more in-depth information on
how to successfully do these things and more.
Change Your Expectations for Togetherness
With family and
friends, it’s important to be aware of your limitations. Think back to previous
years and try to pinpoint how much togetherness you and your family can take
before feeling negative stress. Can you limit the number of parties you attend
or throw or the time you spend at each? Can you limit your time with
family to a smaller timeframe that will still feel special and joyous, without
draining you?
Also, when dealing with difficult relatives, it’s okay to
set limits on what you are and are not willing to do, including forgoing your
visits or limiting them to every other year.
For those who
experience loneliness during the holidays, consider
inviting a group of friends to your home. If virtually everyone you know is
with family during the holidays, you might consider volunteering to help those
less fortunate than yourself. Many people report these experiences to be
extremely fulfilling, and your focus will be on what you have rather than what
you lack.
Set a Schedule
Putting your plans on
paper can show you, in black and white, how realistic they are. If you find a
time management planner and fill in the hours with your scheduled activities,
being realistic and including driving time and downtime, you will be able to see
if you’re trying to pack in too much. Start with your highest priorities, so
you will be able to eliminate the less important activities. Be sure to
schedule in some time to take a walk in nature each day if at all possible, as
exercise and exposure to daylight can drastically reduce or even eliminate the
symptoms of SAD. (If climate or other factors prohibit this, try to find some
time to sit by a window and look out; several minutes of exposure to natural
light, even if through a window pane, can help.)
Breathe
This sounds like a
no-brainer, but sometimes we forget to take deep breaths and really give our
bodies the oxygen we need. It's great if you can take ten minutes by yourself
to do a breathing meditation, but merely stopping to
take a few deep, cleansing breaths can reduce your level of negative stress in
a matter of minutes, too. If you visualize that you are breathing in serenity
and breathing out stress, you will find the
positive effects of this exercise to be even more pronounced.
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