Holiday Stress-Busting

Dennis Kenny

Does this describe you during the holidays: enjoying the season, relaxing with family, celebrating, and feeling the warmth of your own family and cultural traditions?

Or are you one of the many people whose stress level skyrockets as the calendar turns over to November and December?

Issue 20 of Aging in Stride contains many good suggestions for avoiding stress, as well as its unwanted companion, depression. And here are a few more seasonal suggestions to help you decrease stress and truly enjoy this festive time of year.

• Don't book yourself too heavily. Which activities and events are the most meaningful and pleasurable to you and your family? Learn to say "no" to those parties, gift exchanges and events that aren't as important.
  
• Focus more on the other traditions of the holidays than on purchasing gifts. If crowds and frantic shoppers stress you out, the last place you want to be during the last month of the year is a crowded mall! Talk to other adult family members about their thoughts about holiday gifts—maybe it's time for a new tradition.
  
• To opt out of that last-minute mall battle, and to avoid overspending out of desperation, start your shopping early. Keep an eye out for holiday gifts all year long. If you're shopping in July and see "just the thing for Aunt Mabel," go ahead and buy it. Chances are you won't find something as perfect when you're down to the wire. (But be sure to keep gifts where you won't forget them—and keep a list of what you've purchased.)
  
• Ask for help! If you are hosting the holidays in your home, guests will most likely be happy to help out. Can Cousin Charlotte bring her famous cranberry sauce? Would your grandson pick up a pecan pie from that wonderful bakery on his block?
  
• The traditional holiday family reunion can be stressful if "old material" and family friction come to the surface. Be aware of the possibility, and enlist others to help defuse stressful situations.
  
• Watch what you eat and drink. Overeating or drinking too much alcohol can sap your strength.

One of the best depression busters is to do something for others. Volunteer or donate to a reputable charity or service organization. And if it happens that you are alone for the holidays, this can be one of the most meaningful and joyful choices.

For more information...

Check out some of the links found in Issue 20 of the Aging In Stride companion reader support center.

The National Women's Health Information Center website offers the article  "Managing Family Stress During the Holidays," which contains many more suggestions for holiday mood improvement.

Photo by Andres Romero