Christmas Holiday-Stress-Management: A Simple Survival Guide

So to help you think about how you can maximise your own wellbeing this Christmas I’d like to offer you a five simple tips that I’ve found to be common themes amongst my clients.

1. Set realistic expectations

I know of lots of people who get caught up in the fantasy of Christmas time without ever stopping to think about what is really important to them. Perhaps you are one of them.

Think about this for a moment. For example, this might be a time of particular religious significance for you, or a precious chance to spend time with more distant members of your family, or perhaps it’s just a much needed break from the routine pressures of work that is needed most.

What is the most important thing for you to gain from this Christmas holiday? Now that you are clear about that, how can you plan to make sure that your needs are fulfilled?

2. Beware of the words should, ought and must

Whenever I hear a client say to me that they really should, ought or must do something, I always check further to see if what they are talking about is really their goal or if they are compromising themselves to fit in with the wishes of someone else.

Of course Christmas is naturally a time of give and take but nothing leads to stress, fatigue and resentment more quickly than compromising yourself for someone else.

So watch out for how many times you say those words over the Christmas holiday and if needs be give yourself permission to say no a little more often.

3. Learn to Delegate

Realise that you don’t have to do it all on your own. Asking for help has several advantages; firstly you take the pressure of yourself and share the responsibility for things going well, or even not so well on occasions.

But there is another reason why asking for help is a good idea because it gives you a great opportunity to bring your friends and family together as a team, especially if you have young children who can get involved and that’s a great thing to do at Christmas time.

4. Know your stress triggers

Keeping your sense of balance and perspective are vital if you are to stay centered and really enjoy the Christmas holidays and to do that you need to be aware of what your stress triggers are.

What is it that makes you really tense? Perhaps it’s the kids squabbling over trivia, anxiety about how a present might be received, or how to manage the complexities of a perfect Christmas lunch.

What is it that is most likely to pull you off balance?

If you do get out of balance how does that affect you. A short temper, tension headaches, or perhaps stiff neck muscles? By being aware of your stress triggers you have a much greater chance of stopping them from building up and you can then take active steps to release the pressure.

5. Gratitude is essential

I know of lots of people, especially those with tendencies to be a perfectionist who get caught up on focusing on the things that go wrong or don’t quite work out as planned. This sort of negative thinking can be immensely draining, upsetting and exhausting but stopping it can be a challenge. So the trick here is to deliberately override any negative thoughts with positive ones, however false or mechanical it may feel at the time.

A great way to do this is to focus on at least 5 good things at the end of the day. They don’t have to be big things, think about the small everyday things that have helped to make your day pleasant. For example, today my five things today include gratitude for the lovely bright sunshine reflecting off newly fallen snow, a really nice smile I got from one of the children in the village and the generous help I got from the lady serving me in the post office.

Just focusing your attention on a few good things each day is an excellent way of releasing stress and maintaining a positive mindset.

So my final tip for the festive season is to take the time to laugh, celebrate and acknowledge all the things you are grateful for. Added together it will make tremendous difference to your day.

Enjoy your holiday, you deserve it.

Anne Marshall is one of the UK's leading Health Coaches and author of The Health Factor: Coach Yourself To Better Health.

Known as a highly intuitive and fun loving motivational Coach, Anne works with both individuals and organisations to help improve wellbeing.

If you would like to know if you could be one of Anne's select private clients, or if you would like her advise on improving the wellness culture of your workplace you can contact her directly at www.AnneMarshall.com

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