What is your Christmas Stress? or perhaps it's not at all?

• Is it the panic of what presents to buy your family and friends?
• The lack of time to go and do everything you feel you should do?
• Or perhaps who will get presents and who should get just christmas cards?
• Is it the stress of having family around and the pressure, tension or expectations that it can create?
• Maybe you feel stressed about - What to wear at the multiple functions you've been invited to?
• Or it could be the cost of christmas (not just the money, but the time and extra curricular activites)?
• The politics of Christmas in the family or at work?
• The increased business or lack of business around christmas time?

Do you feel any real stress? or are you creating it? Take our Stress Test... let us know how you feel, and what's the real problem. Take our Stress Test here

Tips for Christmas Stress...

No.1 - Acknowledge it ! say out loud - "I'm feeling stressed" and then do whatever you must to STOP it. The important thing is that is you do feel stressed – be aware of it and then do something about it. Get out of that mindset,

Start by - allowing yourself to just STOP whatever it is your doing for just 5mins Take a couple of deep breath and relax remind yourself - what is Christmas really about for you? What is it's true purpose?

"And the Grinch, with his Grinch-feet ice cold in the snow, stood puzzling and puzzling, how could it be so? It came without ribbons. It came without tags. It came without packages, boxes or bags. And he puzzled and puzzled 'till his puzzler was sore.
Then the Grinch thought of something he hadn't before. What if Christmas, he thought, doesn't come from a store. What if Christmas, perhaps, means a little bit more." Dr. Seuss

AGAIN let me stress (pardon the pun!)- The most important thing is that is you do feel stressed – be aware of it and then ACT

Get out of that mindset, without reaching for the alcohol,cigarettes or food. You’ll only feel more stressed and/or guilty. Instead simply be aware that you’re feeling stressed (everyone feels stressed as some point) and choose to do something more productive for you - IMMEDIATELY. even if it's only for 2mins.. Do something Different before getting back to what you were doing - you'll be in a much better state - and probably feel a lot different eg. For example

• Sing, Scream, Dance, move (force yourself to smile and laugh if you have to)
• Go for a walk or exercise –(run/walk up and down a flight of stairs, do arm weights for 5mins)
• Look at your favourite photo’s (smile as you remember these memories – even a forced smile will release the tension if you hold it long enough)
• Put on some music – dance and sing at the top of your voice
• Shout, scream and laugh at your own craziness of dancing,singing or screaming !
• Write down everything you feel overwhelmed or stressed about and then burn it ! (or submerge it in water and drown it)… then laugh at the ridiculous feeling of being stressed about such things – life is after all is bigger than all that. (and so are you)
• Just remember to Take a break – Change your thinking – ask yourself – “what do I want to feel instead right now” and remember that stress is only a bi-product of believing that what ever your stressing about is more important than your own life.

Let us know and we’ll pass them on in our next blog… list them
here

"Probably the reason we all go so haywire at Christmas time with the endless unrestrained and often silly buying of gifts is that we don't quite know how to put our love into words." Harlan Miller

Lastly Ask for Help If you are truly struggling with everything you need to do, take this as an opportunity to reach out and allow others to help you. Re-prioritise and remember what is the real meaning of Christmas for you.

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