The holidays are a wonderful time to be with family and friends, but they can also be a time of struggle — however that tends to show up.
Oftentimes, the advice is to “brush it off” or to ignore your least favorite aunt digging into your relationship or your uncle who seems to think that holidays are the time for politics. Yeahhhhh, that’s just not realistic to move on from. Outside of family, there are financial strains, memories that bubble up without any warning, dark days, and a whole laundry list of things.
Let’s get real. Most importantly, let’s keep it simple.
Exercise
If you don’t exercise regularly, don’t let this feel intimidating. It’s all about small shifts. There are a lot of potential benefits to exercise, but especially during the holidays, it can be a great way to reduce stress. When you’re stressed, your body releases chemicals called cortisol, epinephrine, and norepinephrine. While these hormones are a sign of a strong reaction to stress, in the long term, they can negatively affect your health.
Exercise has been shown to help reduce the levels of cortisol in your body and improve your mood, helping you feel less stressed. If you’re looking to incorporate exercise into your routine, you don’t have to change your gym regime all of a sudden. Instead, change one or two things and instead of doing what you normally do, do it differently. If you normally jog on the treadmill, change it up by going outside. If you normally go to the gym, try doing your exercises outside. Changing the routine around can help you avoid the usual patterns you have when you’re stressed, allowing you to feel less stressed.
Daily Rituals
Established daily rituals can help you stay grounded and in control when things seem to be flying by too quickly. This can include breathing exercises, journaling or guided meditation. Try to incorporate small rituals into your day to remind you of who you are, who you are with, and what you are doing. When you’re stressed, it’s easy to forget about the small things in life that make you happy.
Incorporate a few of these rituals into your day to ground yourself and bring your thoughts back to center.
Breathe Before You Speak
When you’re stressed, your breathing is usually quicker than usual because your body is releasing more stress chemicals and you’re more anxious than relaxed. When you’re breathing quickly, you’re probably not in the right state of mind to think clearly or communicate effectively. When you’re anxious, take a breath and focus on your breath. Inhale and send the breath all the way to the depths of your stomach. When you’re ready to talk to someone, try to put your thoughts into words instead of communicating through your body language.
Read a Book
Reading can relax your body by lowering your heart rate and easing the tension in your muscles. Since we’re often inundated with things we “have” to read (emails, bills, signs, etc), opening a book allows for an escape into a literary world that often distracts from daily stressors.
The holidays can be a challenging time for many people. We all feel it and experience it at different levels. Need recommendations for more or want a bit of guidance, don’t hesitate to reach out and ask us. Contact us and we will respond directly.