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Ending Holiday Stress:
You might remember
the day Santa Claus brought you your first bicycle. It had green handlebars
and seemed to shine under the Christmas tree lights. It was hard to
believe that the present of your dreams had actually arrived. You
knew you’d always remember it as the best Christmas ever.
Fast forward a few years. It’s
Christmas week, and you’re a basket case. You don’t think
you’ll ever be able to finish all the shopping, the wrapping,
and the decorating in time for the big day. You also have visits to
make, cards to send, and donations to mail out. You are dealing with
full-fledged Christmas stress, and it shows no signs of abating.
The stress of the holiday season
can be trying in the best of circumstances. But if you’re dealing
with other major stressors, such as the recent death of a loved one,
holiday stress can seem unbearable. You might be so tense that you
cannot enjoy any holiday-related activities. You might snap at your
children or your spouse, and you might find yourself unable to focus
at work.
There are many causes of holiday
stress. To begin with, you might be striving to fulfill unrealistic
expectations. You might have a perfect postcard view of the holidays—a
vision that no human being could expect to realize. Your impressions
of holidays might have been formed by the movies, where families gather
around a tree and sing Christmas carols in perfect harmony.
Another common cause of holiday stress
is having too many people on your Christmas list. You might expect
yourself to buy for not only members of your immediate family, but
also for teachers, friends, distant relatives, and co-workers. You
don’t want to leave anyone out, so you create a list that even
Santa Claus would find difficult to fill.
You might also be suffering from
the stressed-out host syndrome. You might have been elected to hold
Christmas festivities at your house, and you’re panicked. You’re
striving to decorate the house, trim the tree, grocery shop, bake
cookies, and prepare fudge. You don’t know when you’ll
have time to string the lights in front of your house, or to mount
the Christmas cards on the fireplace.
Family members might be contributing
to your stress. Your children might be demanding the latest video
games, even though you’re budget will never accommodate them.
Your mate might be demanding that you increase your share of the holiday
chores. Your parents might be demanding to stay a week or more at
your house, creating further tension for your household.
The fact is, you can enjoy the holidays
while reducing your stress level considerably. This begins with engaging
in some pre-holiday planning. Write a list of your goals for the holidays.
What do you really want to accomplish this year? What can you realistically
do on your own, and what will you need help with? Putting your aims
in writing can help to give you some peace of mind.
It’s also important that you
set your own agenda for the holidays. Don’t let other people
dictate the agenda for you. In this way, you can ensure that your
needs are met, before you attempt to fulfill the needs of others.
Chances are, your goals are not to buy presents for everyone you’ve
ever met or to get out every decoration you’ve ever owned. Rather,
your goal is probably to have a safe, festive holiday where you, your
family and friends can enjoy the festivities. Realizing what your
true goal is, and mapping out a way to get there, can help to reduce
your stress.
There is no denying that holidays
make additional demands on your time. However, through appropriate
time-management techniques, you can work to ensure that you are not
overwhelmed by responsibilities. If you have a difficult task to face,
consider enlisting the aid of family and friends. Sharing the load
can reduce your stress level remarkably. Also, you have to strike
the idea that you must have the perfect holiday. Instead, strive to
create a holiday that’s good enough…good enough to make
you smile…good enough to bring joy to your loved ones. Also,
spend at least part of your holiday preparations doing some good for
someone in need. You’ll find the experience rewarding—and
it should help you to better cope with holiday demands.
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