Even if you love the get-togethers, presents, and family time the holidays usually bring, you may still experience a significant amount of stress. Whether you’re worried about packed schedules, endless to-do lists, family drama or something else, dealing with stress during the holidays can be tough, even if you’re already taking nonprescription anxiety medication. Fortunately, it’s possible to deal with holiday stress quickly and effectively by getting into a healthy frame of mind and working to mitigate stressful situations before they even happen. Before you plunge into the busy social calendar of the holiday season, take the time to prepare yourself with these essential stress-combatting strategies.
Practicing Gratitude
Although you may not always realize it, a top cause of irritability is focusing too much on the negative. If you tend to look on the dark side of every issue during the holidays, you may find it lifts your mood to practice gratitude instead. Finding the silver lining and taking a positive approach to stressful situations can help you gracefully handle even the toughest holiday scenarios. You may find it useful to:
- Write out a list of everything you’re thankful for this holiday season
- Try to find the bright side even in bad situations
- Spend a few minutes every morning in reflection or meditation and remember to practice gratitude daily
- Remove yourself from stressful or negative situations and allow yourself to take breaks from stressful tasks that could be dragging your mood down
- Let your friends and family know that you love and appreciate them and focus on being kind and generous to others
Setting Daily Intentions
Another strategy for combatting stress during the holidays is to take charge of your goals by setting daily intentions. Even if you already take over the counter ADHD medication, it is helpful to set clear-cut goals and ambitions for yourself throughout the season. This approach puts you in the driver’s seat and can help you avoid stressful situations before they even happen. To put this strategy into practice:
- Make it a goal to be extra giving and generous this season
- Set daily goals for yourself and take baby steps to reach them
- Focus on one task at a time and don’t stress yourself out by looking at too many details at once
- Split up your chores throughout the season so you won’t suddenly feel overwhelmed or overbooked
- Remember to take some time off and give yourself time to relax and unwind
Handling high levels of stress during the holiday season can feel frustrating and sometimes even overwhelming. Overly booked social calendars, present shopping, family time and many other common holiday scenarios can weigh on your mind day and night. Thankfully, preparing yourself with essential stress-combatting tips ahead of time can help you mitigate those stressful situations. By making sure you practice gratitude throughout the season and set daily intentions to take control of your holiday goals and schedule, you can keep stress at bay to fully enjoy the holiday season.
