Although it’s the most wonderful time of the year, the holiday season can also be the most stressful time of year for many. A myriad of stressors can disrupt a beautiful holiday season, whether dealing with family drama, buying gifts, or balancing your social calendar. To better cope with these disturbances, take time to focus on yourself. Even though it’s the season of giving, it’s also essential to take care of yourself to enjoy this particular time of year. Here are a few self-care tips to help manage holiday stress.
5 Self-Care Tips to Manage Holiday Stress
1) Plan Ahead
A lot of the stress from the holidays comes from additional duties and responsibilities added to your schedule. Whether it’s hosting friends and family, buying gifts, or decorating your home, there’s a lot to manage. That’s why it’s best to plan and organize your schedule to complete these tasks on time.
Being proactive can help you effectively manage holiday stress and relieve the anxiety of procrastinating. To keep yourself organized, set deadlines for when you want to finish shopping for gifts, sending holiday cards, or putting up decorations. If you’re planning on hosting any dinners, try to buy the ingredients for meals or special recipes at least a week ahead of time if items go out of stock.
Along with deadlines, it can also be helpful to create a holiday checklist to keep track of everything you need to do. Using a planner or online calendar can help you remember any tasks and deadlines and give you a visual look at how busy your schedule is. Organizing your time and planning for stressful jobs will provide you with peace of mind and more time to relax and focus on yourself.
2) Organize Your Finances
Managing your finances is already tricky enough, but it becomes much more stressful around the holidays. From buying gifts to dining out to celebrating with friends, it’s easy to overspend with all of the excitement of the holiday season.
However, no one likes being broke, and stressing about your finances can negatively impact your well-being. To help make holiday spending more manageable: Create a budget for your finances to prevent you from going overboard. When creating your budget, give yourself a spending limit on presents, dining out, and other activities, and make sure to stick to these restrictions.
Be realistic about what you can afford to spend on gifts and look for ways to capitalize on holiday promotions and discounts.
If you can’t afford gifts for everyone on your list, consider doing a Secret Santa or White Elephant exchange, so you only have to buy for one person. You can also make homemade gifts or give acts of service as presents if your bank account is looking low. Doing something thoughtful and putting work into a present can make it more meaningful and heartwarming.
Along with managing how much you spend, the holiday season is also the perfect time to tackle debt so you can go into the new year with a fresh slate. Especially if you spend too much on gifts and celebrations, it’s essential to pay off any credit card debt or other borrowed money as soon as possible to protect your credit score and reduce any associated stress. If you’re not sure where to start, make room in your budget for debt repayment and try to pay more than the minimum amount each month.
Try to live frugally until your debt is paid off and put extra money toward these bills. If you’re a homeowner, you can also use your home’s equity as another financing option to pay off debt. Although you’d technically be taking out another loan, this may be a wiser decision as it has a lower interest rate than a personal loan or a credit card. You also get the money in one lump sum so you can immediately start paying off the high-interest debt.
3) Stay Active
It’s no secret that the holiday season is known for indulgent sweets and meals, so working out can help you feel less guilty for treating yourself to some cookies and or a second serving of stuffing. Along with keeping your body healthy, staying active is also an effective outlet to relieve stress and anxiety, making it a popular self-care activity. Regular exercise can also boost your mood and give you more energy so you can tackle your busy holiday schedule with ease.
Even though it’s cold out, there are several ways to stay active in the winter. Consider joining a local gym or fitness club for indoor workouts, or do a few exercises from home. Luckily, there are more ways than ever to get in a productive workout routine from home with online fitness programs, indoor cycling bikes, treadmills, and more.
Even taking a walk around your neighborhood with friends can help clear your mind and make you feel more relaxed. No matter how you work out, make sure to do something you enjoy to get the most out of your self-care.
4) Show Gratitude
Reflecting on what you’re grateful for is great self-care practice for any time of year, and the holiday season is the perfect time to get started. Instead of getting caught up with all of your life’s stress, take a moment to celebrate what you’re grateful for this time of year.
Writing these things down can help relieve stress and can help you realize how much you genuinely have to be thankful for. If there are certain people on your list, make sure to tell them how much you value them. This can help change your perspective when you’re stressed out and can help you focus on the positive aspects of your life.
Save your notes and review them on New Year’s Eve to remind yourself how much you have to be grateful for in the upcoming year.
5) Prioritize Your Time
The holidays are a busy time of year, and it’s easy to think you need to attend every event or celebration. However, feeling obligated to participate in everything can be extremely draining and can cause even more stress and burnout in your life.
When looking at your tasks and invites for this holiday season, think about what’s most important. What activities do you value the most? Whether you want to spend more quality time with family, show support for friends, or take some time for yourself, learn how to say no to certain social events and commitments.
Instead, spend your time and energy on activities that are more rewarding and fulfilling. This will allow you to be more present for the events and activities that matter and will help you better manage holiday stress. Remember, it’s okay to take time for yourself and prioritize your needs this holiday season.
