Tips for Managing Stress During A Busy Season

Stress: containing force or influence: such as

            C: a physical, chemical, or emotional factor that causes bodily or mental tension and may be a factor in disease causation.

Not all stress is bad, and stress itself is a very normal condition of being human. In fact, small amounts of stress can be beneficial for us by motivating us to act. This could be to improve performance, complete a task or assignment, meet a deadline, or even motivate us to find or move into safety. Stress becomes negative quickly, however, if left unmanaged. Chronic stress is linked to a variety of health problems, so it is important to manage our stress effectively.

During the holiday season, we are faced with stressors that are very unique to this time of year including financial pressure, time and obligation pressures, the stress of unrealistic expectations, and disruptions to our routines. All of these pressures that cause stress to many can be alleviated with some fairly straightforward tips. While these are simple on the surface, they actually require a lot of internal work that can be further complex with the addition of a partner and/or kids. There is a simple three-step process, but I am going to elaborate on financial pressures and routine disruptions.

Financial pressure comes in the form of gift-giving, gift-buying, travel, hosting, etc. All of these typically cost money. Sure you can scour the internet to try to find the best way to manage all of these financial pressures while still executing on them. Google searches like: how to host on a budget, budget-friendly gift ideas, etc. are generally really popular around this time of year.

How to Manage:

1. Get clear on your budget. If you haven’t put your finances under the 50-30-20 microscope, do it now. Please.

2. Establish your TOTAL gift giving budget, hosting budget, travel budget, etc.

3. Establish further clarity by determining WHO gets a gift, HOW much your budget per gift is for anyone outside of your immediate family, WHO you will host, and WHERE you will travel, etc. 

4. Gifts can also be giving your time and energy. While it may not be in the budget, you can do something more meaningful with a little thought and consideration.

To summarize, get clear, establish boundaries, hold your boundaries. If you have a partner and/or kids, this should be a family discussion so everyone is on the same page. That is essentially the best advice that I can give for every aspect of your life:

1.     Get clear on your values and what’s most important to you.

2.     Establish your boundaries based on your values and what is most important to you.

3.     Say no to whoever and whatever is not in harmony with or in alignment with your values and what is most important to you.

When it comes to routine disruptions, get back to your boundaries and keep your routines in place even if the time shifts. For example, maybe your morning routine starts at 9AM versus 6AM, but keep it the same. Same with your PM routine. Maybe you usually start your evening routine at 8PM, but you’re out later so it's now shifting to 11PM. I find morning and evening routines to be the most important to keep in place when everything else is a little more fluid. Both routines are grounding, and give you a sense of normalcy during an abnormal season. This is going to help manage your stress and keep you and your family sane as well because you have two things you always come back to, that you can rely on, and that will ground you when everything else is a little crazy. Don’t have a morning routine or an evening routine? Set one up. I don’t care if it’s a 10-minute routine, and is like: I brush my teeth, comb my hair, get dressed, and make coffee in the morning. In the evening, I brush my teeth, wash my face, moisturize, get into my PJ’s, turn off my phone, and get into bed. Whatever makes sense for you, establish it, and get into the habit now before you’re in the thick of a chaotic season. Need help with habits? Check out this post.

Final words: treat your time and energy like the precious gifts they are. Get clear on your values, get comfortable establishing your boundaries, holding your boundaries, and saying no to anything that is outside of your boundaries.