In January, most of us are coming down from sugar highs, family overload, and overextended schedules and energy levels. Despite our desire to meet all the holiday expectations, this can be taxing on our biological and family systems. Then there is the further expectation of making resolutions (covered in a later blog) which we often feel obligated to do (because everyone does) but frustrated by because they often turn into failure. All of these expectations can take a toll on us and the joy we might feel moving forward.
For some, the holiday stress might be related to holiday grief anniversaries because we’re remembering someone we lost. Or the loneliness of spending holidays alone or as simply “part” of other people’s holidays but not truly feeling connected with them.
So how does one decrease holiday stress levels and increase more realistic expectations? RELAX!!
Make time to BE STILL and DO NOTHING!
In a world of constant noise and busyness, there is value in turning it all off and just enjoying the quiet. Our nervous systems were not intended to be ON constantly. Our systems (body/mind/spirit/family) need silence, stillness, and quiet in order to heal and recover. Choose to make time for yourself moving forward. Choose to go where technology can’t interrupt the quiet for a while. Do some meditation, pondering, or reconnecting to your higher power. This will increase your resilience over time. Remember, doing “nothing” is really offering yourself a break from “doing everything” and gives your system a chance to rejuvenate.
Learn to say NO to others so you can say YES to yourself.
For many, it’s hard to set limits, say no, and establish healthy boundaries. Knowing what to say yes to and when to say no is a healthy way to establish boundaries and limits on our ever-requested time and energy. How many times during the holidays did you say yes to an event, activity, person, or tradition that you really wanted to skip or modify? Did saying yes to all of these things bring you joy during the holidays? Or did they just wear you out? Saying no is about understanding your priorities so you can choose, intentionally, to put YOUR priorities first. This will help you say yes to yourself more when it really counts.
Be okay with just resting, taking a nap, or enjoying some down time.
This helps our physical and mental bodies have time to recover and reset. If you run an engine constantly, eventually it will wear out. Our systems (body/mind/spirit/family) are no different. If we are on the run constantly, eventually things break down or stop working altogether. This might look like the following: kids having more meltdowns, parents with less patience, everyone being irritable, getting physically ill, more fighting amongst family members, and more. These are signs that we are over doing it and need to take a break, do fewer things, and choose more wisely where we put our time and energy.
Get, or give, a 20 second hug (or lots of them).
Twenty second hugs will actually shut off our fight/flight response and calm down our nervous system. Stress often throws our systems into fight/flight/freeze as we go on automatic or swerve into survival mode. When we keep our holidays (and our lives) too busy our systems respond this way. Be sure to calm down enough to shut off your fight/flight/freeze response so your nervous system can recover too. When our fight/flight is constantly going, the stress chemicals can cause damage to our physical health over time. Let your body SHUT DOWN once in a while, on a regular basis. Doing this now, after weeks of being on high alert will give our bodies, and ourselves, a chance to recover and heal.
Follow Me On: