Mindful Tips For Managing Holiday Stress

The holiday season... before you know it, BAM! it's here. Most people look forward to having a well-deserved break, getting together with family and friends for Christmas and New Year, or just general merry making.

However, many also find that the holidays bring as much stress as they do joy. The rush to wrap up a work year before leave, running around getting everything ready at home for festivities, going over budgets, obligation of spending time with people you don't enjoy, not being able to spend time with loved ones, eating too much, drinking too much, loneliness etc., and that's just any normal year. 2020 is not just any other year.

This year there will be many who have not seen family and friends for an awfully long time, and do not know when they can next. We are incredibly lucky that the restrictions in Victoria have lifted but it is still a day-to-day situation and this uncertainty creates additional stress for a lot of people.

For those of you who find that the holiday stress is creeping up on you, here are some mindful tips that I use to help give myself perspective and decrease stress levels.

1. Managing expectations. I manage my own expectations by telling myself everything does not have to be perfect. That way if things don't turn out 100% perfect, I don't get too upset.

2. Think big scheme. When I start getting frustrated with a situation, I try to think of it in the big scheme of things, a situation is just that - a small blip in my day that will pass.

3. Practise kindness. When dealing with difficult people, I try my best to practise kindness. I can’t know what they are going through in their lives to make them behave that way. Believing their behaviour is not personal makes me more patient and less angry.

4. Being kind to myself. This one is difficult because of my built-in mechanism but practice will one day make perfect. ;) I try not to beat myself up too much if I don't get everything done or if I eat that extra snack I was not going to eat! Haha...

5. Smile. I think of the things that I am grateful for or something that makes me smile. Don't underestimate the power of a smile, it boosts serotonin even if it is forced! So, start smiling!

6. Pause to breathe. If I find myself starting to feel overwhelmed, I stop to take a few deep breaths, close my eyes, relax my body from head to toes while imagining the stress leaving my body as my muscles relax.

7. Pressure point self-massage. The Union Valley or Hegu pressure point is located between the base of your thumb and index finger. You can also find it by locating the highest spot of the muscle when the thumb and index fingers are closed together. See image below. You might want to avoid this pressure point if you are pregnant as it is believed to induce labour.

• Massaging this pressure point relieves stress and headaches.

• Using your right thumb and index finger, find the space on your left hand between the base of your left thumb and index finger. See image above.

• Press down on this point for 5 minutes. Move your thumb in a circle while applying pressure, taking slow deep breaths. Be firm, but don’t press so hard that it hurts.

• Repeat the process on your right hand.

• You can do pressure point self-massage several times a day, or as often as needed for your symptoms to go away.

I hope the tips I shared will help decrease your stress levels and make your holidays cheerier and more enjoyable! If all else fails, come for a #RelaxationMassage and I will knead the stress out of you!

#KneadingHands will be closed from 23rd December 2020. We will be back on 6th January 2021 to treat you with well deserved, relaxing, pampering #massages!

P.s. Meeko would like me to let you know that she is busy researching and will be back with her next blog in January!

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