Ways To Beat Holiday Stress
As time passes, do you find that you’re dreading the holidays more than looking forward to them? Remember being a kid and feeling such a sense of joy and anticipation when the holiday season rolled around? What happened to all that?
When you feel like the holidays have become more of a burden that a pleasure, their are ways to reclaim some of that childhood joy.
Identify Those Things That Cause Your Holiday Stress
The first way to beat holiday stress is to know which things cause it.
The stresses will vary from person to person. While Joe might love decorating the outside of the house, Alan may hate it. And your neighbor Marie loves all the shopping and baking, but you’re too busy these days to feel that it is anything but an exhausting habit, a tradition you just can’t seem to let go.
The extrovert loves all the gatherings and parties, while the introvert would rather celebrate in a more quiet or slower-paced way.
Once you’ve defined your particular stress makers, rest assured that whatever they are, none of them make you a scrooge. We all have them, and while some people don’t mind talking bah humbug, others hide the dirty little secret of holiday burnout from a misguided sense of guilt. I mean, isn’t everyone supposed to get into the hurr- hurry rush-rush of the season and actually enjoy it?
Um…not really. We’re human. We have unique tastes and unique limits, yes?
Eliminating Your Holiday Stress Triggers
Once you’ve identified exactly what about the holidays have you exhausted one week into the season, you can eliminate them, and any residues of guilt over having done so.
If you want to keep certain things, but hate the hassle, simplify those things. Often, less really is more, so eliminate half, or more, of all those outdoor lights you hate hanging. One beautifully decorated row of shrubs beneath the front windows (easy to manage) and a huge pre-lighted LED wreath makes a simple, but beautiful statement. Or aim a few colored spotlights that create images all by themselves on your outside walls.
Do you keep on sending cards and gifts to people you haven’t seen in a decade just because that’s what you’ve always done? We can all just stop, right? And place our major energy, focus, and cash where it counts the most.
Or better yet, we can make some of the gifts ourselves, or put together family-sized goodie baskets rather than buying individual gifts for relatives and friends.
Shop online this year, and stay within your budget. Don’t worry about what others might think of the cost of the gift. Those in the know really do appreciate the thought the most. I, for one, love getting the simpler little things, or the company of people rather than something that I know will have broken the givers budget in two!
Buy the goodies ready-made for that dinner or the big party. Really, it’s ok! And if you can’t afford that, go potluck or buffet style, and ask everyone to bring a dish to pass.
If you still want to add the personal touch to those yearly cookies, buy several rolls of refrigerated cookie dough, slice and bake them, and add your special touch by decorating them.
Cut out half of the parties or events you normally attend, keeping only the ones you actually enjoy. If you can’t bear to do that, but still want to ease the load, attend each on alternate years.
If they no longer have meaning, eliminate certain traditions or begin new ones that would add special meaning to your holiday.
If you sincerely have energy left over, save the money you’d normally spend on that last minute shopping trip that isn’t really necessary, and do something wonderful for the needy.
One thing I’ve done in my own life is to embrace the spiritual side of the holidays as opposed to secular side. That in itself has made a huge difference.
This is your one go-round here on earth, and the holidays only come one each per year, so remake them in a way that will allow you to look forward to them again with the joy you knew as a child. And absolutely steer clear of guilt any time its little voice tries to invade your more peaceful mind.
Any ideas to add? Please do 
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That is very nice posting. I agree with you, we must eliminate stressfull in my life. Try to keep relax. Find what kind make you relax if you get stress. My hobby is blogging, if I have big load to make me stress, I always open my notebook and make some posting or optimize my blog.
Hello
Stress, yes, it is an on-going problem for so many of us. I like your idea of working on your blog to reduce stress.
Thank you,
Karen