Let’s face it…. The holidays are here and like many of us, you are probably wondering how you are going to maintain sanity during the holiday season.
Right??
Stories collected over the years are hard evidence of the kind of madness that descends on otherwise perfectly healthy and reasonable adults during this very festive but pressure-filled time.
From planning lavish dinners to completing all of your holiday shopping and figuring out tentative travel plans, you may be feeling pretty stressed out. That is why we are going to give you some quick tips on how to keep cool and happy during the most anticipated/dreaded time of the year.
Now, before you start listing all of the reasons for why maintaining your composure is simply too ambitious of a task, let go and trust the fact that you CAN learn how to maintain sanity during the holiday season, regardless of how impossible it may seem at the moment.
The question is whether or not you’re willing to do the work. Mindfulness is not something that you can successfully implement into your daily routine without much effort. But if you familiarize yourself with the basics of the practice, you will undoubtedly start to see quick and substantial progress in your stress-management efforts.
Then, apply these principles to the following steps…
Learn How To Maintain Sanity During the Holiday Season In 7 Easy Steps
Step 1: Time Management
Shopping and cooking are by far two of the most stressful aspects of the holiday season. To mange in due time without loosing your sanity, you have to figure out a simple but fairly specific plan.
First, decide on your gift and meal ideas.
Then, take a calendar and write down exactly how many days of holiday shopping and food prep you have left.
Taking already scheduled plans into account, make sure to leave a few personal days speckled throughout; you want to allot some time for yourself to relax and get back to basics.
If possible, aim to schedule these times in between your shopping dates and the actual holidays. A break between shopping and cooking could go a long way.
Step 2: Self-Love
Have you ever noticed how much time you spend thinking about other people during the holiday season? Family, friends and coworkers are usually the main priority around this time of year; you want to make sure to express your love, gratitude, and genuine thanks for all of the good they bring into your life.
But, just because you want to show your appreciation for them, does not mean you have to do it at your own expense. On your designated “personal days” engage in a little self-appreciation with a lovely spa day or our therapeutic Winter Solstice Box. You’ll be amazed by how much more relaxed, joyful and energized you’ll feel.
Step 3: Affection
Focusing too much on getting your loved ones the right gifts can overshadow one of the most important presents you can give anyone – attention and affection. This is the time of year where you get to spend some time with the people who make the biggest positive differences in your life.
A personal gift, one that expresses your affection for the recipient, can be something other than a physical present. Consider what the people in your life like to do, and then find activities that can help you do them together. Spending quality time together is a gift in and of itself.
Step 4: Attitude Adjustment
Having a negative predisposition pertaining to the holiday season can become a self-fulfilling prophecy. Let’s say that that last few holiday seasons didn’t go off exactly as planned and you were left feeling pretty unmotivated to enjoy the current one. This is where an attitude adjustment can come in handy.
Start by reminding yourself that your emotions are under your control. Realize that your thoughts will become your reality, and then do something about this fact by practicing positive thinking. Once you readjust your attitude you will be able to manage whatever comes your way without allowing it to get you down.
Step 5: Help
NO ONE, and we do mean NO ONE can do everything by him or her self all of the time. That’s just not a realistic expectation for anyone including you to have. Now that we’ve gotten this fact out of the way, please understand that it is completely, totally and inarguably OK to ask for help if you need it.
When you are feeling stressed, you are going to make mistakes. To alleviate some of the stress, reach out to friends and loved ones and ask for help bluntly, appreciatively and bravely. A happy holiday season shouldn’t be a source of unmanageable disarray. And if you see someone in need of help, be ready to lend a hand.
Step 6: Gratitude
Energy spent on negative thoughts is better directed at positive ones that are reinforced with real examples. Making a list of what you’re grateful for can help you keep your priorities in line and your attitude in check.
When you are motivated by gratitude, you are by far less reactive to setbacks, bad news, intrusive thoughts or other types of negativity. In other words, by practicing gratitude you’re increasing your resilience against stress.
Step 7: Exercise
People wondering about how to maintain sanity during the holiday season can’t be surprised to see exercise on the list. After all, it’s one of the first things doctors recommend for keeping sanity during the rest of the year.
Yes, we know that the New Year marks the time people make their annual resolution to exercise and get in better health, but it’s actually a shame to wait till then. The stress leading up to the holiday season can be significantly reduced if you make exercise a regular part of your everyday life.
With our Winter Solstice Box pre-orders coming in at lightning speed, we were starting to feel a bit of holiday pressure. So we took some time to refocus, reenergize and regroup. We made a manageable plan of action with specially allotted personal time.
Then, we adjusted our attitudes by counting our blessings thinking about the anticipation showed by our clients, and happily got back to work. We also realized that other people could probably use a lesson on how to maintain sanity during the holiday season – so here you go!
References
http://blog.merkaela.com/peace-through-mindfulness-and-mediation/
http://blog.merkaela.com/master-elusive-art-goal-setting/
http://blog.merkaela.com/practice-self-love/
http://merkaela.com/winter-subscription-box
http://blog.merkaela.com/what-is-an-affirmation/
http://blog.merkaela.com/stay-positive-light-bad-news/
http://www.mayoclinic.org/healthy-lifestyle/stress-management/in-depth/exercise-and-stress/art-20044469
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