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Holiday Stress

The holidays are such a strange time, when you think about it. It is the most joyful and exciting time but it is also the most stressful and overwhelming time. Having to split your time, having to balancing families, having to stretch financially to give gifts, having to be everywhere when you don't want to be anywhere. So what happens to our joy?

 

The holidays should be a time to slow down, reflect on the year we had, take time with the ones you love and to just breathe. So what makes us do all of the holiday crazies? My hypothesis is we tend to take the last two months of the year to "catch up" on everything. As the end of the calendar year closes we want to make up for any "lost" time that we had at our jobs, with our families or with our friends. We want to make sure that we can close out the year on a high note. We also strive for showing others that we love them. During the holiday season two big love languages are being used: quality time and gift giving. What we know about love languages is not everyone has the same ones. The people whose love languages are not gift giving and quality time are trying to fit into society with what society tells us to do (give gifts and spend time). When it is not our love language that we are acting out, at times it can be stressful, difficult and uncomfortable. This creates holiday stress. (you can normally tell who loves gift giving or quality time by the way they act and their spirit).

 

Where can we go from here? We start using our love language. We start showing others we care in our own ways. Whether its "acts of service" by volunteering or cleaning your moms house, "physical touch" by holding your grandparents hand while they tell stories (within your boundaries), "words of affirmation" by letting people know your appreciation for them, "gift giving" by giving someone a gift to show you care, or lastly "quality time" by spending one on one time with those you care about. We all have the ability to take the holiday season to pour into ourselves and others to create happiness and joy throughout the holiday season.

So take this time to slow down, to be with the ones you love and to allow your heart and brain to feel peace and calm.

 

Thank you for being so good.


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