A very mindful Christmas

Well, here we are again! The end of the year is drawing near and Christmas is only a couple of weeks away. The parties are happening, all of the family gatherings are being organised, gifts are at the forefront of our minds and all of that pressure is mounting. 

Some of us have a lot to do over the Christmas period and feel as though we are expected to be at every event and present giving ceremony. Some of us are away from family and friends, and the pressure is to try and make Christmas feel as special for us as it does for everyone else.  

Another huge cause of silly season stress is the financial factor. Knowing where to cut off the spending can be hard and it’s easy to go overboard. Australian consumer comparison site Finder.com found that when factoring in other holiday expenses (such as food and travel), the average Australian spent $1350 on Christmas last year. 

Our poor brains. In fact, this Harvard Medical article explains how Christmas pressures require us to keep track and be aware of more responsibilities than usual which makes the brain’s prefrontal cortex go into overdrive. Over time, this high level of demand can decrease memory and even stop the production of new brain cells.

Unfortunately, with all of this and many other variables, Christmas can easily stop being one of festive togetherness and be one of the most stressful times of the year. 

Let’s take a look and see where we can consciously make this Christmas one we truly enjoy. How wonderful it would be to make this time more about being in the moment, not anticipating the next – honestly I can think of nothing better. Here are some ideas I have put together:

Self-care moments

My favourite thing. Under times of intense pressure and stress, we often forget to be kind and look after ourselves. Booking in a facial, massage, some floatation therapy or a hair appointment here and there can give us the quiet moments we need to recharge and breathe.  

Money can be tight this time of year, so an alternative could be a walk in nature, maintain our fitness regimes or a nice night in with Netflix and some dark chocolate. 

Cut down on the cocktails

Controversial I know – but just keeping track of how much alcohol we consume can make a huge difference to our emotional health. 

Researchers have found that alcohol takes a psychological and physiological toll on the body and may actually compound the effects of stress.

Drinking alcohol may seem to provide some positive feelings and actually be a stress reliever but in the long-term, stress and alcohol fuel each other and can wind up making us say things we don’t mean and having misguided emotional responses to various situations. 

Mindful eating

I’m not being a buzz-kill, promise – on Christmas day I intend to eat myself into a food coma. But over the period leading up to the big day, we can easily forget to eat, eat foods that don’t make us feel good (because it’s quick and available) and eat mindlessly – affecting our mind-gut connection. 

Based upon Buddhist philosophy, mindful eating can be thought of as a type of meditation. An easy way to be more mindful at mealtimes is to not multitask, pay attention to each bite and chew 20-30 times before swallowing. 

Use a calendar or diary

Making sure all of the events and parties we will be attending over the Christmas period are in a calendar or diary can be a good visual idea of how much we are really taking on. Looking at it on paper, we can see if we are putting too much pressure on ourselves and then we can regulate a bit better from there.

Say no

Sometimes we just can’t do everything. Taking some time to think about what and who is most important to us can help us prioritize our time more efficiently. Saying no can be tricky, but worded correctly doesn’t have to have any negative connotations. 

Gift budgets

A helpful way of keeping on top of our spending could be to first make a list of everyone we wish to buy gifts for and then allow a budget for each. After calculating how much that will actually cost us, we can assess whether or not we need to revisit our list or change the allowance for each gift. 

Another huge expenditure we can see over Christmas is for food and drinks – especially if we are hosting an event ourselves. The sheer list of traditional Christmas foods and drinks is endless and so easy to over-do. And, of course, we subsequently end up with left-overs for weeks. We could try to select smaller dish sizes or limit the types of foods meaning we spend less on ingredients and also reduce kitchen stress during preparation.

With these suggestions and many other stress-busting tips out there, we can certainly take Christmas back and make it the best time of the year again! 

Merry Christmas everyone! x