Every year, we go into the holiday season dreading traffic, crowded stores, crazed shoppers, long lines, excessive spending, disorganized family portraits and imperfect celebratory gatherings. The holiday season is meant to bea time of joy and good cheer, but more often than not, the process of creating such joy is a stressful one.
Psychotherapist and stress management expert Mary Beth Del Balzo, ACH, LCSW, of Ho-Ho-Kus, recalls that a recent study found that 60 to 90 percent of all illness is stress related. Traditions, family and celebrations are understandably important parts of the holidays, but those are some of the things that can cause most of your holiday stress.
With the holiday season in full swing, now is the time to employ different methods of stress management and to avoid the negative effects of festive stress. From lightening your work loads to eliminating them all together, there are lots of things that can be done to make life easier during these times.
1. Remember that you are still a priority during the holidays. "Put yourself on your own list and schedule things that need to be taken care of," urges Del Balzo.
2. Pamper yourself. Feeling good on the outside will aid in feeling good on the inside. You'll live, breath and emit an air of calm.
3. Exercise. Not only will exercise help you to clear your mind, but it will also promote an even healthier lifestyle.
4. Take a break. Multitasking during the holiday season is fine, but taking a break every now and again is important to maintaining low amounts of stress. "People think we can survive with the stress," says Del Balzo. "But what happens is we keep going and going, and then we end up crashing. We become exhausted and fatigued."
5. Start your shopping early. You will beat the crowds and even catch better sale prices in most instances.
6. Rid yourself of all the stresses of doing holiday shopping. Hire a personal shopper.
7. Don't deal with the stressful environments of holiday hustle and bustle. Try online shopping.
8. Make strict and solid plans for what you want to do during the holiday season. Planning ensures that a steady pace of tasks is set so that you don't become overwhelmed.
9. Simplify festivities. You can pull off a wonderful holiday without pulling out all the stops; less can be more.
10. Say no to unnecessary obligations, such as working over the holidays, catering family gatherings, and so on.
