Is it me or my stress levels have amplified so much within the next week? Between balancing work, self care, and all of the family obligations that come with the end of the year, I am overwhelmed. I mean, we all remember when Clark Griswold loses it towards the end of National Lamphoon’s Christmas Vacation. It is the most wonderful and stressful time of the year.
And I am not alone. According to a survey conducted by the American Psychological Association, 89 percent of Americans felt stressed during the 2023 holiday season. What is even more concerning is that 41 percent of them reported higher stress levels during the holiday season versus any other time of year.
It makes sense. As I mentioned previously, my calendar is getting filled with not only fun things, but other end of the year appointments and obligations. Furthermore, another reason why the holidays are particularly stressful during this time of year for me is the fact that feelings of grief come up as Christmas was my late mother’s favorite time of year.
With that being said, I’m trying to enact some sort of plan, if you will, to prioritize self care during this time of year.
The first is allowing myself breaks and giving myself grace. I am crocheting and knitting about half of my gifts this year. This fact alone is very overwhelming, because I have a lot of things to make. Crocheting and knitting is not only very time consuming, but can also wreck havoc on my hands if I don’t give myself a chance to move around and take a break. One thing that I did months ago is start making my gifts earlier, so about 75 percent of them are already done. This also applies to anything — work, blogging, and more. I’m doing Blogtober this year, and it’s been a challenge to say the least to write 25 posts. In fact, it is day 5, and I already missed one day. At the end of the day, it’s about giving myself grace and allowing myself a well deserved break to read.
Secondly, I am allowing myself to actually feel. Grief is an overwhelming thing that can consume me to the point where it leaves me crippling. Therefore, if I need to cry, I am going to cry! Also, I give myself a Christmas gift every year like I would give my mom, so that’s something that always helps.
In addition, I’m going to be taking care of my body. I’m going to be working out, and blocking out time to get my 10,000 steps, whether it’s outside or doing a class. I’m going to therapy. I’m going to be drinking my water. I’m going to make sure I eat. I’ve been working on taking care of myself, truly, and this is something that I will be doing more so throughout the holidays when it’s just easier to let that go.
Finally, I’m going to be setting boundaries as much as I can. The biggest way I can do so is with my schedule and being selective of what I can and can’t do.
How are you taking care of your mental health this holiday season? Let me know in the comments below.
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