While the holidays are a magical time of the year, it can also be filled with lots of stress. I asked on Instagram what stresses folks out during the holidays and I got an overwhelming response. So here are my 3 best tips to avoid that holiday stress!
1. Gifts- The number one response I got from people was gift giving! While gift giving should be a fun part of the holiday season it often comes with a lot of expectations. Expectations that you find the perfect gift or spend lots of money on a gift. My personal view is to just get people what they want and try not to stress about going above and beyond to get the perfect unique gift. Personally, for me, I want to avoid all gift giving stress so I am going to give gift cards this year.
2. Events- This time of year is crazy busy between holiday parties, family get-togethers, and work parties. A good rule of thumb is don’t do 3 events in a row. So example, Monday night you have a board meeting, Tuesday you have a work holiday lunch party then on Wednesday should be a rest day. Build in a rest day/night to decompress, have a nice meal, or just do nothing.
3. Toxic people- Don’t feel obligated to see or spend time with toxic friends or even family members. I know this is probably the hardest tip to follow because “it’s the holidays” and your supposed to spend time with family etc. But you should not have to sacrifice your mental health just to see family or friends. If someone doesn’t make you feel good or comfortable, then don’t have them in your life or at least do your best to limit your time with them.
Comment below about how you manage your stress during the holidays!
Photography by Jordan Hibbs Photography