Although the holiday season is supposed to be one of the happiest periods of the year, when we get to spend time with people we love most celebrating all of the festivities, in truth it can be one of the most stressful periods of the year for most of us.
Between the pressure of choosing the perfect gift, to being able to afford it all to the long lines and crowded parking lots.— the holiday season can be stressful.
However, it doesn’t have to be that way. Here are some of the best steps for weeding out the stress of the holiday season, and making more room for joy and celebration.
Plan Early
One of the biggest causes of holiday stress is feeling like you don’t have enough time to accomplish everything you need to get done. Instead of waiting until Christmas Eve to buy your gifts, plan ahead instead. This won’t just help you avoid the last-minute stress of racing the clock, but it will also help you save money. Buying certain items off-season often means better deals. So if you can manage to purchase a few months before Christmas, you could save potentially hundreds of dollars.
Be Realistic
Another reason why Christmas can be stressful is that many people have unrealistic expectations. Instead of going with the flow or being realistic, they have a specific vision in their minds of how things should play out. If anything even slightly deters from the vision in their head then they can get neurotic. Sound familiar?
Instead of focusing on making a picture-perfect Christmas, focus on making one that’s full of meaningful moments and joy. Remember, the point of the holidays isn’t about what’s in your stocking, or how many presents you received— it’s about love and togetherness.
Practice Balance
There are all sorts of temptations to give in to during the holidays. It’s easy to cave and have a few extra Christmas cookies, or allow yourself a glass of eggnog every night. After all, it’s the holidays, right? However, these indulgences often turn into extreme guilt and unnecessary weight gain. While enjoying yourself is perfectly fine, and even encouraged, overindulging could be unnecessary stress added to the holiday season that you don’t need.
Enlist Help
If you’re hosting the holiday celebrations, it’s normal to feel overwhelmed. Even though you may want to believe that you can take it all on yourself, the truth is that you may be signing yourself up for a burnout. Enlist other family members to help with holiday preparation work.
Whether it’s meal prep, wrapping gifts, or decorating, delegating tasks to other members of the family will reduce your stress load and create more of a festive atmosphere since everyone’s doing their part.
