Tips for Managing Holiday Stress

The holidays season is just around the corner, and you might already be starting to feel the stress that comes with it. There are meals to prepare, gifts to buy, and traveling to be done.

Before you let those feelings of anxiety get the best of you, consider these tips for managing holiday stress.

Plan Your Time

One of the most stressful aspects of the holidays is that there are so many obligations packed into a short amount of time. Family gatherings and holiday parties with friends and coworkers crowd the calendar, leaving little time to decorate and buy gifts for others.

Before those invitations start coming in, determine what your priorities are for the season and structure your schedule accordingly. This might mean saying no to invitations or scaling back on your own preparations, but you’ll be much calmer as a result.

Embrace Imperfection

No matter how much you plan, the holidays are never going to be perfect. Many of us drive ourselves crazy trying to create the perfect experience for friends and family even though we secretly know that’s never going to happen.

Putting aside that desire for perfection will allow you to focus on what really matters — spending quality time with the people you care about. Once you commit to that, the rest will fall into place accordingly.

Avoid Excess

The holiday season is all about indulgence. Parties have decadent food and drinks and there are pitches to spend money everywhere you look.

Giving in to these temptations can have a negative impact on your overall physical and mental health. Eating or drinking too much will cause weight gain and feelings of regret, and spending beyond your means will create financial problems and the stress that comes with them.

Avoid these trap by applying a little mindfulness this holiday season. Determine whether every action you take or purchase you make is really worth it. If you don’t indulge as much, you will enjoy those times that you do even more.