Holiday Stress: 25 Seasonal Soothers for a More Joyful November-December
By award-winning author and stress-relief expert Susie Mantell
If the holiday season finds you not-so-very-merry, try these stress-relief strategies to replenish a weary spirit. Winter bustles with list-making, mall-crawling, web-surfing... Then, the delicious sigh of relief as the last ribbon is curled. But creating a joyous, meaningful holiday season is never quite as easy as it looks. So as Thanksgiving approaches, plan ahead.
For many, this season tends to create over-the-top stress levels and at the end of the day, most of us find attention to personal needs somewhere at the bottom of our Holiday List. Balancing personal needs and professional responsibilities, while meeting family demands challenges the physical, emotional and spiritual well-being of even the most self-aware among us ( even the most "functional" of families.) In these difficult times, we can choose to make this holiday season about what's broken -- or the joy we can create. (See more tips at www.relaxintuit.com )
November & December Holiday Seasonal Soothers
1. Simplify. Make a Pre-Season "To Do" List ( Save a copy for next year. It gets easier each time, and you won't have to re-invent the wheel.)
2. Create a timeline of when you'd like to get each task done to avoid last-minute pressure.
3. Take time early to browse catalogs and the web, plan crafts projects and address cards early, while you watch TV or chat with a friend.
4. Wrap-as-you-shop. Wrap with a friend over tea. Better yet--shop at stores that wrap for you!
5. Ask people on your list what they'd like. Surprises are wonderful too, but asking one another can make shopping so much easier, and really fun to know we're getting just what they really, really want.
6. Let People Help. If you have guests in, bringing part of the meal actually makes us feel more at home.
7. Swap babysitting with a friend to each get shopping done "hands-free." (Bring home a little gift for the sitter.)
8. Consider January sales. Wrap a photo or toy version in a fancy box with an I.O.U. (Then, be sure to buy it.)
9. Deck the Halls. (Okay. Deck one hall. )
10. How could you simplify (or eliminate,) just one task?
11. Read something that makes you think, feel or grow, every day.
12. Let someone go first at the market -- "just because."
13. Invite someone to join you for a holiday meal. If they offer to help, the correct answer is "Sure."
14. Do something you love every day.
15. Organize a girls (or guys) night-out.
16. Eat healthily and exercise. Then, when you splurge enjoy every bite.
17. Missing a far-away loved one? Schedule an uninterrupted catch-up call.
18. Too many plans? Schedule naps, time to read, swim.
19. Too few plans? Invite friends, order-in. Use holiday paper plates. Rent a movie, play a board game. Have everybody bring a wrapped grab-bag gift under $10.
20. Make tea dates. Just a few minutes with someone you really like is a terrific stress-buster.
21. Make one new friend this holiday season.
22. Take healthy breaks.
23. Thank 6 people daily, (e.g. the mailman, a 1st responder, teachers. )
24. If you find yourself alone plan a getaway, join a choral group, donate your services.
25. January 2nd, start a next-holiday savings account, and automatically transfer in a little bit in each week. Little by little, you will make next December so much easier.
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Award-winning stress-relief expert Susie Mantell ...is the author of the deeply soothing relaxation CD, "Your Present: A Half-Hour of Peace,” clinically approved for symptoms associated with stress and sleeplessness, depression and grief, anxiety, P.T.S.D., Fibromyalgia, caregiver stress, cancer, pain, divorce and addiction recovery. Featured in The Los Angeles Times, NBC, ABC, CBS-TV, Town & Country, The American Pain Society, Hazelden and The Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer Foundation, listeners include The Mayo Clinic, Memorial Sloan-Kettering, The Betty Ford Center, V.A. Hospitals,and Canyon Ranch (#1 Spa.) Customizing stress-reduction for Fortune 500 companies, distinguished hospitals and spas, Mantell has facilitated thousands in relieving health-related, work-related, chronic or traumatic stress. Her multi-sensory, mind-body techniques appear in national media, medical and corporate publications. Susie Mantell's Stress-Relief & Wellness Tips are intended as an adjunct to, not a substitute for, professional health care. Order “Your Present: A Half-Hour of Peace” and find more of Mantell’s stress-relief tips at www.relaxintuit.com