Unwrapping Peace: Navigating Holiday Stress
I’m sitting here writing what will be my last little blog for the year. I truly hope these blogs have been of help to those of you navigating your health with a busy professional career and usually busy home life too.
For this blog, I thought I’d turn to what is right in front of us. The holiday season! You can smell the anticipation of days off, for us in the southern hemisphere of summer days swimming, of family and joy.
However, just when you thought leading, organising, time management, project management and managing people was over for the year, it’s not! And to make matters even harder, you aren’t doing this with staff but with family!! The emotions can get quite high (to say the least!).
Balancing the festive preparations with your well deserved personal down time often becomes a delicate act, sometimes (read often) tipping the scales towards stress.
Strategies for Managing Holiday Stress
With that in mind, I thought I’d give you a few tips that have worked for me. They do sound like things you’d do at work (planing, delegating and more) but they work and best of all, you know how to use these tools effectively. So why not use them here?
The ultimate goal being the ability for you to relax, switch of and truly enjoy your time off.
Plan with Purpose: Start by prioritising your commitments. Create a realistic schedule that encompasses festive preparations, people dropping in and personal time. I’ve already had so many people saying they will pop in. I’ve had to be tough. Set boundaries to protect your well-being. If you have a partner, sit down and discuss this together and agree what you’d both like from the holidays.
Embrace Simplification: Allow yourself to simplify wherever possible. Delegate tasks, opt for online shopping, or consider alternatives like potluck dinners instead of elaborate meal preparations. Remember not to aim for perfection. What can you do to really simplify things around you?
Mindful Self-Care: This can be a tough one but a critical one. Amidst the chaos, prioritise self-care. Carve out moments for yourself – whether it’s a brief meditation, a walk in nature, or curling up with a book. And remember, do not take guilt on for this. For you to be ‘on’ you need to be ‘off’, even for little moments.
4. Set Expectations: Communicate openly with friends and family about your availability and limitations. Setting realistic expectations helps reduce the pressure to meet unrealistic demands. I know this sounds weird but it really does help everyone around you and most importantly you. When I started to do this, I felt like an arse…but when I realised how much it helped my family, I was convinced.
5. Gratitude and Presence: Finally we all need to remember what the true essence of this season is. It’s not perfection of events or gifts. It’s about connection, resting, recharging and joy. Connection with yourself, connection with family or friends. Be grateful for those moments and stay present in them. And most importantly use the tools above to protect these moments.
Navigating the Season with Balance
Remember, it's okay to say no. It's okay to prioritise your well-being and put ‘the mask on you first’. It's okay to embrace imperfection. Find joy in the small moments, in the twinkling lights, the shared laughter, and the moments of connection.
I hope you all have a fabulous and hopefully stress free holiday season filled with happiness and come back ready to tackle 2024.
Thank you again for all your support and encouragement!
Put the mask on you first over the holidays and thrive again!
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