6 Self-Care Routines for Managing Holiday Stress
The holidays can be a time full of friends, family, and fun. They can also be a source of stress, anxiety, and frustration! As you’re juggling your normal life activities with the sudden influx of holiday parties, baking, cooking, decorating, shopping, and the works, taking time for self-care can make an enormous difference.
To help you enjoy the holidays more this year, we’re taking a look at six self-care routines for managing holiday stress. These simple holiday stress tips and techniques are aimed at helping you keep in top mental and physical health during one of the most hectic times of the year.
Must-Try Methods for Managing Holiday Stress
While we love spending time with friends, family, and sometimes even coworkers, there’s no denying holiday stress can really put a damper on the whole season. Finding ways to manage holiday stress is critical for protecting your physical and mental health all season long. It’s not selfish to look after yourself. In fact, it’s the most responsible thing you can do!
This year, try out a few of these holiday stress tips and see how much they could improve your holiday cheer:
- Learning to say no to anxiety-inducing events
- Meditating to relax and center yourself
- Finding a creative outlet
- Sticking to your exercise routine
- Practicing a relaxing night time routine
- Getting enough sleep
Learning How to Say No During the Holidays
Our first self-care routine for managing holiday stress is one of the hardest ones for many people to put into practice. Learning how to say no during the holidays (or at any time of the year) isn’t selfish. Sometimes we need to take that breather from the friends, family, and festivities to find a little peace and quiet.
Overstretching yourself during the holidays with social events, cooking, shopping, and other activities can easily lead to high stress levels, anxiety, or even open up the doors for those winter blues. Taking some time for yourself to do whatever you need to do can also help keep you from feeling like you’re falling behind anywhere. Whether you have other tasks to do, or simply need some quiet time, learning how to say no during the holidays is a prime skill to learn.
Holiday Stress Meditation
Meditating comes in as the next item on our list of tips and techniques for managing holiday stress. Learning how to meditate at home or on the go can have a profound positive impact on your mental and physical health. There have been many studies showing the potential benefits of meditation for stress management, pain relief, and even better digestion (useful after those holiday meals).
Adding meditation to a self-care routine is perfect for holiday stress relief. For example, meditating in a zero gravity chair not only provides the potential benefits of meditation, but could also provide a plethora of other boosts like improving mental health, enhancing how the body heals itself, and alleviating stress related health problems that can arise during the holidays. It’s an ideal self-care routine for those looking to improve their overall health naturally.
Finding Creative Outlets for Stress During the Holidays
Our next self-care routine is something that could benefit you all year long, but may be especially helpful for managing holiday stress. Finding creative outlets for stress can improve your well-being and elevate your mood. When we’re having fun, we’re definitely taking care of ourselves!
Just because you have to make those cookies or whip up those dishes for a holiday gathering doesn’t mean you can’t have some fun while you do it. Instead of thinking about these tasks as chores looming over your head, practice living in the moment and enjoying the experience of being creative while you get them done!
If you are having a hard time separating those tasks from creative self-care, that’s okay. Finding any creative outlet works. Creative holiday stress tips can be as simple as listening to music while relaxing in a zero gravity chair, journaling to get your thoughts out, painting your nails, or practicing a musical instrument. Anything that brings you joy is perfect.
Stick to a Holiday Exercise Routine
Next up on our list of holiday stress tips is sticking to a holiday exercise routine. Many people get so caught up with their busy schedules during the holidays that exercise is out the window. Unfortunately, when we throw our typical exercise routine out, we may start stressing about it, causing a vicious cycle to continue.
Sticking to your full body workout exercises also helps with managing holiday stress as it lowers our stress hormone levels (cortisol) and releases endorphins. Endorphins are natural hormones in our bodies that help reduce stress, provide pain relief, and elevate our mood. Getting outside for a brisk walk or run on nicer winter days can also expose you to more sunlight, which could help prevent Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD).
Managing Holiday Stress With a Relaxing Night Time Routine
One of the best ways for managing holiday stress is with a relaxing night time routine. Activities like taking a warm bath, reclining in a zero gravity chair, listening to calming music, or enjoying a hot beverage (decaffeinated!) can help your mind and body unwind before bed. It’s the perfect opportunity to take a little time for yourself and let holiday stress melt away.
For a truly relaxing experience, make sure you’re turning off the television and avoiding any screen time, including your phone, for at least an hour before bed. The blue light emitted from these screens can negatively affect your natural circadian rhythm, making it more difficult for you to unwind and relax.
Reduce Holiday Stress By Getting Enough Sleep
The last item on our list of self-care routines for managing holiday stress is to get enough sleep. While this might sound like a given, many people don’t get enough sleep during the holiday season and it can have a major impact on your holiday stress levels.
Experts recommend that adults get at least 7 to 9 hours of sleep per night for full benefits. Getting less than the recommended amount can lead to increased holiday stress, anxiety, and daily frustration.
If you find yourself dragging in the middle of the day, taking an adult nap can actually be healthy and may improve your overall sleep quality. It’s important to note that daytime naps shouldn’t extend beyond 20 to 30 minutes otherwise they could impede your sleep at night. If you’re using a zero gravity chair as part of your self-care routine already, you may find unique options available to you that help! Not only could zero gravity chairs improve sleep quality at night, but choosing a zero gravity chair with smart wakeup programs can prevent you from oversleeping during a daytime nap!
As you can see, there are a number of self-care routines for managing holiday stress that you can try out this season. Finding ways to cope with holiday stress is important for your own physical and mental health as well as influential on your entire holiday experience. Whether you’re sticking to an exercise routine, meditating to calm your mind, or choosing a zero gravity chair to relax and recover, these self-care routines could make all the difference. Try them out and see which works best for you!
For more information on the potential health benefits of zero gravity chairs and how they could benefit your lifestyle this holiday season, check out these resources:
