How to overcome holiday stress: 3 mindfulness tips

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Written by Trisha Bhullar

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The holidays are coming around! And while that’s usually a cause for celebration — the holiday season does come with its share of stressors. COVID-ruined plans, flight delays, or gifts gone wrong can really put you on edge. If you’re starting to feel holiday fear, we’ll help you overcome holiday stress starting with 3 mindfulness tips.

Fighting holiday stress with mindfulness tips

Mindfulness tip #1 Stay Organized

One of the biggest drivers of holiday stress is chaos. You might have forgotten to get someone a gift, lost track of travel regulations, or simply taken on too many commitments at once. Holiday festivities can be chaotic, so staying organized is the first step to overcoming holiday stress. While this is a really intuitive tip, it’s often easier said than done. Some mindfulness ways you can stay organized include starting your day with a daily planner. This planner can encompass your day, week, or month. And the beauty of it is you can customize it to make it as detailed as you need. For example, some people like having all of their commitments laid out before them — so having a detailed, step-by-step task planner would work best. Other people prefer seeing the big picture, so a goal-oriented planner would work out better. Having the habit of planning keeps you mindful by encouraging you to stay aware of your commitments, and even step back to be grateful for the different events in your life. Ultimately, having a mindful planner is a great way to stay organized, happy and stress-free.

Mindfulness tip #2 Have Alone Time

This is a bit of a counterintuitive tip — after all, aren’t the holidays about connecting with family? That may be true, but everything is better in moderation — family time included! The holidays have the most packed social events of the year, and while spending time with family is great, you might notice your social battery clocking out. It’s important to stay mindful and check in with yourself frequently to see how you’re feeling. How are these interactions making you feel? Are you living in the moment and enjoying them? Besides these check-ins, have just a little time every day to regroup and catch up with yourself. Having alone time not only helps you recharge your social battery but also keeps you mindful about events in the day. You can just spend 5 minutes reflecting on who you’ve talked to, what’s happened, and how the day has made you feel. These reflections are valuable nuggets of insights that can make you appreciate the day you’ve had and the relationships around you.

Mindfulness tip #3 When In Doubt, Choose Mindfulness

Over half of stressed adults during holidays cite gift choices as their biggest worry. Gift picking is indeed a high-stakes job – gifts should be personal, thoughtful, and useful. Instead of running from store to store and fretting about gift choices, make a classic move this year and share the love with mindfulness. Gift your loved ones a mindfulness tool. Everyone benefits from mindfulness — regardless of age, location, or career. A mindfulness timer, like a Timeqube, encourages healthy mindful habits in an unobtrusive manner. Such tools bring you less stress and great happiness — while adding a cute pop of color to your home or workspace.

With these ideas in mind, enjoy your holiday season and stay mindful with family and friends!

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