Welcome to December! Did you brave Black Friday madness or try for an alternative? As wonderful as the holiday season can be, it often brings with it undue amounts of stress: crowded stores, visiting family and friends, holiday parties, and lots of cooking, eating, and socializing can leave you feeling more pooped than pumped. So we gathered some of our favorite tips for staying stress-free and truly enjoying this season, and we want to hear your strategies, too!
Learn to say no: You may want to attend every single holiday event you get invited to, but sometimes it's just not possible without completely wearing yourself out. Give yourself permission to say no to some functions. You'll be more present and able to enjoy yourself at the events you do attend.
Keep it within the community: We all know how crazy shopping malls and large chain stores can be around this time of year, so make an effort to go small and local instead. Support your friend's sewing habit, your local farmer's market, or a town gift fair. You'll find unique gems that will make perfect gifts, and you'll be supporting your community.
Forgo gifts: This might not be feasible or desirable for everyone, but some people say it's totally changed their experience of this season. Instead of spending time and money shopping for things on the weekend, why not plan specific holiday activities to do with your family? Go ice skating, have a movie marathon, do some baking. Spend time with people you love, and let that be your gift.
Breathe in the aroma: If you are shopping and headed into a busy store, get some stress-relieving aromatherapy lotion to keep in your bag. Soothing scents like lavender will remind you to be calm and breathe, even when the line is out the door. You could also put lavender oil on your shower wall (just a few drops will do). The heat of the water will release the scent and help you relax, and it's quicker than a bath!
Get physical: Do some stretching at the end of the day, massage your eyebrows, take a yoga class, go for a long walk or a bike ride if it's not too cold. Move around. This will especially help after you've had a particularly indulgent holiday dinner.
Put it in perspective: Not to say that the details don't matter, but remind yourself that no one is going to remember the outfit you wore or the table decorations as much as they'll remember how much fun they had.
Pay Attention: Keep a running list of interesting observations/thoughts about friends and family throughout the year (put a piece of paper on your fridge or a notebook in your purse). Use these observations to help you find thoughtful gifts for them.
Turn off the TV and turn on the music: Certain music can be very soothing, so step away from things that can be over-stimulating (like the computer and the TV) and relax at the end of the night with a glass or wine or a cup of tea and a favorite, mellow album of your choice.
Tell us your tips to staying stress-free this season below!
Image: Martha Stewart via Body + Soul
Ashley & Kyle's Personality Packed Home 
Aftermarket Resources for Customizing IKEA Furniture 
Like us on Facebook
RSS Feed (Atom)
Good Food to Share 
The Big Book of Small, Cool Spaces 
Apartment Therapy Presents 
The Eight-Step Home Cure 
Bracken Ridge Rug 13
12 Recipes to Know By Heart
How To Make Cake Pops
Comments (11)
Great tips.
I can't really add anything more.
I LOVE that kimono! Good tips, all.
This is wise advice, and easy to put to work!
At the office, there are 3 parties in the same week, and everybody's already worn out, with the end-of-the-year last call hysterics.
I still had a few vacation days left so I decided to take that week off. This will allow me to ease into Christmas, shop slowly for favors, bake some goodies, and above all do some handmade stuff for family and friends -- I'm a graphic designer, and they love my little personalized surprises.
I did that a few years ago and it was one of the most agreeable of my grown-up Noëls.
Exactly. The holiday season is only as stressful as you make it. You don't have to throw parties, or go to them, or even spend the holiday with your family if you don't want to. Since when did everyone start feeling so obligated to do all this? Buy a gift for every person they know and attend every single get together. It's ridiculous. I already have a tiny family and my fiance and I have decided not to go there for Christmas, but stay home together with our dog instead.
one of the most annoying pre-christmas trends is everyone asking everyone else "have you done your christmas shopping yet?" i tend to nip it in the bud and tell them we do not do gifts in our family because everyone has everything they need. people are usually floored that this is even legal...sigh...
what i always ask people is if they have done their christmas baking and it never ceases to amaze me how few people cook or bake and seem to be proud of the fact. but spending tons of time and money at wal-mart is somehow a badge of honour! double sigh...
the year we stopped buying gifts turned the season into a pleasure. i highly recommend it!
Why, exactly, is it okay for you to ask about baking and not have other people ask you about Christmas shopping? The question, and your reaction to others' responses, seems the tiniest bit judgmental, and contrary to the spirit of the season.
I get great joy from the few gifts I buy. I try to make them meaningful, personal, and the best I can afford any given year.
And no, I don't bake, no. But I make my own Christmas cards.
Asking people whether they have done their christmas baking (as if it is mandatory) seems just as annoying as asking them whether they've done their christmas shopping...
For me, the best holiday experiences are ones without inflated expectations. The pressure to have a "perfect" Christmas party or dinner (or perfect gift, or enough gifts) often ends up with someone being disappointed, and no one likes that.
So just aim to enjoy the moment :]
Brilliant post, I think because Christmas comes just once a year we spend all our time trying to keep it perfect instead of spending our time enjoying the fun!!!
yes, i am judgmental on this topic, because i think christmas should be more about the food, family and friends than rushed and often miserable shopping. and my question about baking is hardly rude - how many people have asked you about it compared to the shopping one?
also, very few people are joyful when they ask me about the shopping. typically they are harried and cranky, filled with everything but the christmas spirit. i am thoroughly sick and tired of this season being seen as just another excuse to buy something. so pardon me if i seem ticked.
Nobody has asked me about baking or shopping. My friends only ask me where I'll be on the holiday so they can extend an invitation if one is needed.
My family agreed to abandon presents a couple years ago and it IS amazing how much time and mental space it frees up. But I have been known to walk around our local mall just to absorb the holiday spirit. I love all the lights and the windows and the music and the kids lined up for Santa.
I love Chloe's idea of choosing certain parts to focus on each year; sometimes I bake, sometimes I get crafty, sometimes I'm into outdoor activities like skating and hay rides, sometimes I coast on what other people have put effort into. But it's true I've never done it all in the same year.
We have one standing tradition, which is to attend an annual organ concert at the nearby university. Oh, and my husband hangs lights on the garage. I never know when he's going to feel the urge. I just wait until one night they're up, and that's when the season officially begins.