Keep Calm I’ts The Most Wonderful Time..

In Some people rate Christmas as being more stressful than divorce or being burgled.  We don’t want to add to the stress and have deliberately avoided putting images of holly, robins, snowmen or anything else Christmassy in this article LOL!

The article does, however, provide some tips and advice to make your Christmas as stress-free as possible. Don’t let the festive season get you down: follow the tips and advice you find here, relax and enjoy yourself.

Plan Ahead

Start making a list of things you need to do for Christmas early: for example, shopping, food and presents, decorations, seating plans or travel arrangements.  Make the list as detailed as possible, include people’s phone numbers or email addresses to make contacting them simpler.

Try to prioritise the items on your list: can they be done now, and are they essential?  Do not overestimate how much you can achieve on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day.  Many recipes can, at least in part, be made ahead of time and frozen thus reducing tasks in the immediate run-up to Christmas Day.

Delegate the responsibility for certain tasks to other family members since this will reduce your workload.  Keep your list for next year; it’ll need tweaking and updating but will give you reminders of the sorts of things you need to think about.

Shop online from the comfort of your own home as you’ll not only save time and be less stressed but will probably save money too.  Always make sure you buy from reputable online retailers and check that they can deliver before the big day.

Decide when you will stop your Christmas preparations and start to relax and enjoy the holiday. Work towards and try to stick to this goal, even if it is in the late afternoon on Christmas Eve. Remember that Christmas is your holiday too. So Keep Calm….

Play some relaxing music, perhaps seasonal carols, and burn some scented candles, incense or aromatherapy oil. Take a relaxing hot bath to unwind. Practise Breathing. When we’re stressed our heart beat increases and our breathing shallows, it’s all part of the fight or flight reaction.  Work on reversing this process and take time to breathe deeply.

Have a ‘Great Escape’ Plan!

It’s a good idea to have some pre-planned excuses to escape from proceedings if they get too stressful. Be imaginative and use things such as leaving the room to make a phone-call to a friend or perhaps checking on a neighbour. Just by having planned a couple of escape routes you’ll probably feel less stressed anyway but actually leaving the situation, even for 10 minutes, will help clear your mind and relax you.

Avoid Excessive Alcohol (Yes we know!)

Most de-stressing articles will tell you to avoid alcohol altogether but, let’s be realistic, it is Christmas!  However, do avoid excessive alcohol as it dehydrates your body and makes your liver work overtime to process it, alcohol can also hinder quality sleep.

Drink as much water or juice as alcohol as this will help you to stay hydrated, feel better and therefore cope better with stressful situations. You’ll also feel better on Boxing Day. 

Have Fun! Remember it’s your Christmas too so try to relax and have fun, laugh and be merry and rise above family squabbles and confrontational situations, it’s not worth ruining your Christmas!