Christmas is approaching faster than a rabies-ravaged reindeer.
For some, the festive season is a joyful time filled with the glory of morning after glazed ham and cranberry rolls, Michael Bublé blasting through the Bose and the unmistakable scent of fir wafting through the family home.
For others, December is the most anxiety-inducing month in the calendar.
You’ve gotta buy lots of presents for lots of different people. You might be forced to visit your relatives, including your weird uncle who smells like moth balls and voted no. Maybe you’re missing someone in your life and the holiday season has you thinking about them more than usual.
Whatever the reason, feeling stressed out during the festive season is pretty common. You don’t have to let it ruin all the good bits, though.
Here are five little, relatively easy things* you can do if you feel yourself spiralling this silly season.
*I wanna make one thing clear before we kick off this little stress-lowering list. Sometimes trying to make yourself less stressed (and failing) can make you even more stressed about not being able to lower your stress. Writing that sentence, for example, was stressful. When you’re giving these tips a go, go easy on yourself. You might not be able to do them all, all the time, all at once. Try one that interests you one day and see how it makes you feel. If it doesn’t raise your spirits, bin it and try another.
Write down one thing you’re grateful at the end of the day
This might sound cheesy, but it doesn’t have to be.
You don’t have to sit down with a quill and wax lyrical about your gratitude for the birds that chirp in the trees. Personally, I hate birds that chirp, they wake me up.
Instead, pick something that you genuinely appreciated that day. Maybe it was the first sip of your coffee. Or the woman that smiled at you on the train for no reason. Or the really perfect joke you dropped in the group chat that got everyone “literally dying”.
dear diary, i roasted emmett real good today
The act of writing something down can be a really powerful reminder of the things that bring you joy. When you’re finding it hard to be positive about anything, pushing through and reflecting on one simple pleasure can shift your perspective.
Spend time with an animal or a small child
Sometimes we feel that work, or our relationship, or our studies are the centre of the universe.
The easiest way to get out of this toxic, unrealistic mindset? Go hang out with a kid. Usually, they’re only concerned about when they can bounce on the trampoline next.
When we’re stressed out by deadlines and never ending to-do lists, doing things just for the heck of it can seem pointless. But that’s the point. Everything is pointless, and the point of life is to have fun and to play.
If you don’t have access to a child, a furry friend can do the trick. Spending even just 10 minutes cuddling, patting or playing in the park with a dog can bring you back to simplicity (and simple pleasures) of reality.
Take yourself out for breakfast without your phone
It’s easy to feel listless in the summer, especially when you’ve got time off work or uni. Finding stuff to do every day that isn’t food related is a real test of creativity.
Sure, this one’s food related too, but only by proxy. Taking yourself out for a meal, solo, without your phone is probably something you don’t do all that often. Shit, most people don’t go to a dinner date with another human without bringing their phone and checking it more than once.
But give this a go.
Go to your favourite cafe with a few hours to spare so you’re not worried about what time it is (because if you don’t have your phone, you’ll have no idea – who knows how to read an analog clock anymore? Certainly not me).
Not having a phone means you’ll have nothing else to do but look around and take in your surroundings while you wait for your food to come out. When it does come out, you won’t be compelled to take a photo of it.
Instead, you might look at it and appreciate it for what it is: a hot meal prepared just for you by another person, with your pleasure in mind.
If you focus all your attention on the sight and smell of the avo toast in front of you, you might find it tastes even better when you take the first bite.
Not worrying about what time it is or how many likes your curated flat lay is going to get? That’s relaxing.
Commit to some form of physical exercise every day
Holidays are synonymous with quitting the gym altogether and feasting like kings and queens.
The feasting bit is a fabulous idea; but ditching all physical activity during the Christmas break ain’t so.
You don’t have to continue grinding in daily F45 classes for the entirety of December, but doing something active every day; be that a walk with your dogs, a pilates class at your favourite studio once or twice a week or even a bike ride to the shops to collect some more cranberry sauce can do your brain some good.
Don’t think of it as a necessity (if you want to spend a whole day in bed watching Netflix because you went too hard at a Christmas party the night before, do it) but rather as something that is restorative and gives your day some structure.
Physical activity, strenuous or soft, can release endorphins and get you out of the house. And getting some D on your back (I’m talking about sunshine) is always a stress-busting mood booster.
The best bit? When the holidays are over and you do go back to your routine, you won’t feel so dusty.
Reach out
We don’t want to sound like your mum, but if you’re feeling really slammed this Christmas, don’t be afraid to reach out and ask for some help.
‘Asking for help’ is a loose term that can mean anything. It doesn’t have to be desperate. It could be:
If you’re tasked with making the salmon blinis for Christmas lunch, ask a sibling to come over and help you construct them. You might end up having a really nice convo while you flip mini pancakes.
If you need to vent about something, ask a friend to go for a walk or a drive, and let it all out. They’ll be glad you trust them enough to confide and they might share some of your feelings, making you feel less isolated.
If you’ve got no bloody idea what pressie to get your boyfriend’s mum, ask your workmates. A random person you don’t usually chat to might have a stellar idea and you’ll bond over that.
Oh, and don’t forget to go in for seconds at Christmas lunch. Nothing takes away worry quite like a hot mouthful of stuffing.
Of course, if you’re feeling really overwhelmed, or anxious, or depressed, help is always available. To contact the Mental Illness Fellowship of Australia call their national helpline on 1800 985 944. To reach SANE, a national charity helping Aussies affected by mental illness lead a better life, call their helpline on 1800 187 263. If you or someone else needs support in a crisis situation please holla at Lifeline on 13 11 14.
