Relatives, expenses, pressure, tasks: welcome to the most challenging period of the year. Some practical advice to spend a (plus) peaceful Christmas.
Christmas is expected, family, magic, connection. But, also, forced meetings, crazy purchases, traffic, social pressure: for many people, what we are experiencing is the darkest and stressful period of the year. And there are excellent reasons not to bolla them hurry like grinch.
The “joys” of Christmas … There are obliged lunches and dinners with family pieces avoided for the rest of the year. Inevortant questions to dodge without turning on incendiary discussions. Parties, pizzas, performances and work deadlines strictly to escape by the end of the year. The race to gifts in last minute traffic and the account that thinks. There social pressure To decorate, illuminate, to show yourself festive. There nostalgia For those who were once and now leave an empty place at the table. A sense of loneliness more acute, for those who do not plan any celebration. The urgency of tracing budget on the year that turns to the end.
For these and other reasons it is quite common, during the Christmas holidays, feeling further down, more stressed, anxious, overwhelmed, depressed and isolated than in the rest of the year. However, there are some scientifically tried strategies that we can implement to lighten the days a little and even enjoy them a little.
Draw borders. If you manage to identify the situations that put you most in difficulty, you can then define Certain acceptable limits within which you can manage yourself and beyond which you prefer not to push yourself, or think in advance of escapade to be exploited in case of need. Understanding and respecting our limits will help us to respect them also by others, and to concentrate time and resources more effectively, reducing stress.
You may choose to stay in a pre -established budget for Christmas gifts, or to fix a maximum number of social occasions to celebrate – only with those who are most close to you. Or – again – decide to give you to the most distant relatives only on the eve or Christmas lunch, I tend A dry and educated spare phrase In case of inappropriate questions (“Thanks, the theme interests me but I prefer not to talk about it now, I’m on vacation”).
Reduce expectations. Defined realistic expectations on “having to do” during the holidays: none, In real life not scanned by social algorithmsshe expects you to have a house decorated in an elegant and minimalistic way, or that you baked Masterchef -style recipes. Get genuine and without pretensions: if you ask people what they prefer to Christmas, they will hardly focus on one of those extra details I have been thinking about so many days.
Plan in advance. Part of the stress that gravitates around Christmas consists of a series of Extra tasks that are added to the normal list of daily commitments. If the reason for this anxiety is the same every year, next time you play in advance and plan in time: you will be able to reason in a reduced pressure situation with greater lucidity, to carry on you or delegate the tasks most difficult for you. For example, if next year you have to host the dinner, you will find happy relatives and friends to contribute with a dish.
Slow down. It seems paradoxical that, to enjoy the rest and quiet of the Christmas holidays, you are forced to get there … accelerate. Set aside and keep once to reflectto write your thoughts and let them sediment.
Melancholy after the holidays? It is physiological. The emotional peaks we feel on Christmas days can leave us emptied and exhaustedat the end of the holidays. The post-natal magone experienced by many It is a perfectly normal reactionnot the reflection of something wrong. We accept that the body and mind need a few days to find balance, and we help them with a full of endorphins – for example, through physical activity and activities that reconnect us with others (and that do good).
