5 Mindful Tips for Managing Holiday Stress
The holidays are often a fun and exciting time with your loved ones, but they can also get quite stressful sometimes. Prioritizing your mental health during this festive time is essential, and mindful practices make it more manageable. The Mind Matters clinicians share some easy tips to help you control your holiday stress and make the season easier.
What are Some Common Holiday Stressors?
There are several factors that can cause you to feel stressed during the holiday season. Some common stressors you might experience include:
Social anxiety
Not everyone aspires to be the life of the party. If you experience social anxiety, you may feel like everyone is looking at you and have difficulty making eye contact with others. This type of anxiety can make it difficult to enjoy time with your friends and family.
Rehearsing topics of conversation or how you’ll introduce yourself before an event can help. Additionally, if you have a friend or family member you feel most comfortable around. They can be your social buddy and help relieve some of your stress.
Grief
The holiday season often reminds us of loved ones who are no longer with us, leading to heightened feelings of grief. While you have no obligation to celebrate, we recommend staying in contact with your support system to help you navigate this time and reduce some feelings of loneliness and depression.
It’s also vital to continue to care for yourself, such as going for walks, eating nourishing meals, and getting enough quality sleep.
Sobriety
If you’re in recovery from a substance use disorder, holiday parties may feel mentally taxing. Be aware of your triggers and try to remove yourself from situations that can interfere with your sobriety.
Have a plan to get the support you need, like calling a friend or accountability partner or attending a 12-step meeting.
5 Helpful Tips for Managing Your Holiday Stress
Here are a few tips and techniques for stress management you can try this holiday season:
1. Try deep breathing
Breathing exercises are an excellent way to reduce physiological stress and shift focus from what makes you anxious.
We recommend the 4-7-8 method:
- Inhale through your nose for four seconds.
- Hold it for seven seconds.
- Exhale through your mouth for eight seconds.
2. practice gratitude
It’s easy to get caught up in the shopping and gift-giving, but taking a couple of minutes at the end of the day to write down something you’re grateful for allows you to recognize the things in your life that don’t have a price tag.
3. Establish firm boundaries
Before the hustle and bustle begins, decide what events you’ll attend and who you’ll choose to spend time with. The holiday season may make you feel required to be around those you have strained relationships with, but you don’t have to.
Remember that you’re not responsible for how others react to your boundaries and that saying “No.” is always a valid choice. However, if you have little control over the matter, it’s helpful to keep your distance from those who cause you stress and keep your interactions with them to a minimum.
4. Reframe negative thinking
We’re often our worst enemy, and breaking away from cycles of negative thinking feels challenging. When you find yourself thinking the worst, acknowledge the thought and ask yourself if it’s accurate. Negative thoughts happen, but it’s important to distinguish between your feelings and what’s presently occurring around you.
Another way to ground yourself and block out negative thoughts is to notice what’s happening. For example, what can you hear, see, taste, smell, and touch? This technique can help you slow down your thoughts and bring you back into your body rather than your mind.
5. Schedule self-care
Many people can forget to care for themselves during the holidays, especially busy individuals and parents of young children. Ensure you’re getting ample rest and make mindful food choices. Indulging on a few cookies and sweet holiday treats is a must during the holidays, but binging on too many sugary treats will make you feel sluggish and increase your stress level.
It’s also vital to make time for activities and hobbies you enjoy, even if they aren’t holiday-related, like reading, watching your favorite comfort show or movie, or crocheting.
Seeking Stress Management and Therapy During the Holidays
When you don’t think you can handle stress management alone this time of year, we’re here to help. We care about you because your Mind Matters to us. We offer telehealth visits, and unlike many other mental health providers, we don’t have a waitlist for new clients.
You can rely on our therapists to listen and help while providing empathy and building your confidence to tackle obstacles now and in the future on your mental health journey. We believe in offering modern-day solutions to meet your modern-day needs.
Find Therapy and Telehealth Services Near Columbus, Ohio
Which of these mindful tips will benefit you the most? Mind Matters offers accessible care and compassionate clinicians who personalize therapeutic approaches to meet your needs.
Call (614) 545-9773 or schedule an appointment online. Mind Matters is located near Columbus, Ohio. We provide therapy services in Columbus, Dublin, Hilliard, Powell, Worthington, Galloway, Grove City, Bexley, Grandview Heights, Clintonville, Upper Arlington, and Franklinton, Ohio.
