This Holiday Season
As we enter the holiday season, following a tumultuous presidential election and amid ongoing challenges like illness, personal and relationship stress, financial strain, and uncertainty, it’s crucial to find ways to survive and thrive. Here are some tips to help you achieve just that.
Mind the Little Things
The littlest things in our daily lives can significantly impact our stress levels, health, and happiness. These include what we feed our bodies, minds, and spirits.
Take an Inventory
Track everything you consume, including food, drinks, substances, prescriptions, OTC medications, and supplements. Make brief notes each morning and evening about your mood, energy, pain, stress levels, and sleep quality. This can help you understand the impact of daily habits on your overall well-being.
Exercise and Movement
If you exercise, track it. If not, track your steps and ensure you incorporate healthy movement into your days. Bonus tip: dancing is healthy movement!
Feed Your Mind
Consider what you consume mentally—TV, music, social media, reading, news, and conversations. Choose positive and uplifting materials and experiences whenever possible. Become aware of the thoughts circulating in your mind. You can increase awareness by spending 10 minutes writing your thoughts first thing in the morning. Use looseleaf paper or a cheap spiral notebook. This uncensored stream-of-consciousness writing can reveal thought patterns, regrets, worries, and areas of procrastination.
Nourish Your Spirit
Our spiritual well-being encompasses our physical and mental health, emotions, and sense of belonging and meaning. Everything you consume, physically and mentally, affects you spiritually. Exposure to others’ emotions and energy affects your spirit and your energy. Spend time with positive people and in positive environments.
Spend Time Outdoors
Set a goal to spend time outside each day, even if only for a few minutes, preferably in green spaces. When the weather precludes your time outdoors, mindfully look outside your window, observing the weather, nature, or whatever you find in your view of the world.
Manage Holiday Stress
Be discerning in what you consume, purchase, and spend your time on this season. Reach out to people you love. Take time to breathe. Just 2 minutes spent focusing on your breath and quieting the mind has enormous benefits.
Prioritize Meaningful Actions, Reflect and Celebrate
Focus on activities and experiences that bring you joy, peace, or gratitude. Create rituals and events that reflect what you value most. Think about the people and experiences you’re grateful for and incorporate more of those into your holiday season.
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