7 Tips To Stop Holiday Stress and Anxiety
The holidays are in full swing and while this can be a joyful time of year, many people are suffering with stress, depression and anxiety. Taking positive action on your stress level will help to stop your stress, anxiety and allow you to fully embrace the holidays.
Use the Following 7 Tips Starting Today to Make a Powerful Impact in Reducing Your Holiday Stress Level:
1. LEARN TO SAY NO
Saying yes when you should say no can leave you feeling frustrated, resentful and overwhelmed – not how we want to feel during the holiday. Remember, friends and family will understand if you can’t say yes to in every request. Remember the old airplane instruction – put your oxygen mask on first in order to be ABLE to help others.
2. KICK PERFECTION TO THE CURB
The holidays are a time when the bar is set high: when Norman Rockwell is our idol. The perfect decorations, gifts, cookies, and parties are a must and needs to be done with supreme excellence. That is a self-imposed limitation…the holidays don’t have to be perfect. We are humans and are not MEANT to be perfect – only perfect in our imperfections. So let go of the control of perfection and allow in just the enjoyment of the season.
3. PRACTICE GRATITUDE
Research shows that simply feeling grateful promotes health, longevity, reduces stress and happiness – simply by appreciating what is in your life that you are grateful for. When you feel gratitude, you kick stress to the curb – they cannot coexist with one another. I highly recommend getting in the habit of writing down or thinking about, three things you are grateful for or appreciate – you will truly amazed how this will have a powerful impact in your life.
4. SET ASIDE DIFFERENCES
You may have to be around someone this holiday season whom annoys you, frustrates you or you simply do not want to be around. By choosing to focus our attention on a small positive aspect about someone, no matter how small, will stop the dwelling on their negative trait(s) and will improve your state of mind and your stress level. Remember, this is about you – not them.
5. EAT A HEALTHY DIET, EXERCISE
When you eat a diet that is abundant with veggies, healthy fats and adequate protein, you will have the energy you need to easily accomplish what you desire, your mood will be lighter, you will sleep sounder and this will enable you to enjoy the holiday more. Remember, if you put in lousy foods, you will get a lousy output in terms of health, vitality and mindset.
6. HYDRATE!
Most people are mildly hydrated and suffering needlessly. They are experiencing headaches, fatigue, sugar cravings, lethargy, weight gain and more. When we are dehydrated, our stress levels rise including the stress hormone cortisol that likes to store fat – especially belly fat. So drink up every day, throughout the day. I recommend to drink half your body weight in ounces each day. For example, if you weigh 120 lbs., drink a minimum of 60 ounces daily.
7. TAKE TIME TO RELAX AND BREATHE!
Stress is a buzz-kill and we want to enjoy our holiday, celebrate with contentment in our heart and not feel emotionally and physically drained. One powerful technique is Box Breathing. This is simply breathing in for 5 seconds, hold for 5 seconds, breathe out for 5 seconds and hold again for 5. Repeat 6 times or as often as desired. The best part about this breathing technique is that you can use it anywhere – driving in holiday traffic, on a plane going to grandmas, wrapping gifts or at night to fall asleep.
Remember, again, to put your oxygen mask on first – you can’t help or contribute in a quality way and have fun, if you are not taking care of YOU.
Happy Holidays to each of you!
©2019 DLS HealthWorks, LLC. Lori Shemek, PhD health and weight loss expert. Bestselling author of How To Fight FATflammation! and the bestselling author of ‘Fire-Up Your Fat Burn!’