How Not To Feel Like This Over The Holidays

Here’s the secret: balance, especially during the holidays, is impossible. There will be times you will be running around, battling crowds, baking cookies at 11:00 or wrapping gifts after midnight. The trick is to limit the craziness to that which you can manage, set appropriate expectations, remember what the holidays are truly about and embrace a little bit of holiday nuttiness. Here’s how.

Start early. If you’ve not yet started, begin today. I have a spreadsheet with all holiday gifts from last year, including people I need to tip. It is much easier to update the list than start from scratch, plus it reminds me that last year I tipped the UPS guy $60 and gave my kids’ bus driver a $20 Starbucks gift card.

Abandon Perfection. If there is ever a time to let things slide, the holidays are it! Make a conscious decision to let some things slip … you’ll have plenty of time in January to scrub the fridge or iron the sheets. Surrender your goal of making this holiday “perfect.”

While You Are At It, Abandon Expectations. It is hard not to have a vision in your mind of what the perfect holiday season looks like, smells like and feels like. And chances are pretty good that your holidays will not precisely match that vision because, well, life. Don’t let expectations diminish the reality, ‘cause chances are pretty good that the reality is pretty good.

Remember “Making Memories is Messy.” My favorite quote by author Lisa Quinn. Let the kids get elbow deep in flour to make those Christmas cookies – holidays are about fun and family.

Take Time for You. This is your holiday too. Whether it’s a bubble bath, a long walk with a friend, a good book or a yoga class, do something for you.

It’s Okay to Feel Blue. It seems that wherever I’m out in the world between Thanksgiving and New Year’s Eve, at some point Andy Williams will remind me that it is the “Most Wonderful Time of the Year.” But sometimes, it’s not. Sometimes it is the bluest season of the year. Or the most difficult time of the year. Most likely, your holidays are both joyful and melancholy, happy and sad. It is truly okay for all of those things to be true.

Finally, Keep Walking. Your walking practice is one of the best ways to manage holiday stress, keep your focus on the things that matter most, reap the happiness benefits of walking, combat seasonal affective disorder (remember, the days between Thanksgiving and Christmas are some of the shortest of the year), and avoid the holiday weight gain. Keep going.