Coping With Holiday Stress

December 21, 2020
By Stephanie Hache, MSW candidate

While the holidays are meant to be a time to gather, relax, and decompress, they can often bring additional pressures and thus create unwanted stress.  With celebrations come added expectations.  These can include purchasing gifts, wrapping, decorating, preparing food, and much more.  Feeling unable to afford gifts for our loved ones may cause feelings of sadness and guilt; however, pushing ourselves beyond our financial capabilities can have detrimental consequences on our mental health and well-being.  Exceeding your monthly budget can cause financial problems long-term, so it is important to follow a plan.  

Planning helps ensure that you can enjoy the holidays with less stress. As we approach this holiday season, consider the following tips:

Stick to a Budget: Decide how much money you can afford and do not exceed this amount.
 
Consider Alternatives to Traditional Gifts: In lieu of purchasing gifts, try donating to a charity on behalf of a loved one, suggest a gift exchange to limit number of presents you need to purchase, consider spending quality time with family members instead of giving monetary gifts, or bake/make a homemade gift.
 
Avoid Going into Debt: Avoid using credit cards.  If you cannot afford to purchase the gift at the time of buying, consider one of the alternative options above.
 
In addition to financial stressors, the holidays are often filled with social obligations.  While it's common to feel pressured to commit to gatherings, it's important to consider whether we feel comfortable attending.  Drawing attention to our own well-being during the holiday season is essential and will likely require setting boundaries.  Agreeing to social obligations can cause us to feel resentful; therefore, it is important to think about our own needs and set boundaries accordingly.  During these unprecedented times, we may choose to stay home for any of the following reasons:

• We are unable to implement proper social distancing protocols
• We are not comfortable with all of the individuals in attendance
• We feel unsafe in the emotional environment
• We have a general disinterest in attending the event

Writing out a script ahead of time can help us prepare for when we are invited to events we do not feel comfortable attending.  While saying no is not easy, it will help ensure we maintain our relationships and self-respect long term.

Lastly, the holidays have the potential to impact our healthy routines.  Breaking our sleep, nutrition, and movement routines can negatively impact our physical and mental wellness.  While it can be nice to take a break from our day-to-day obligations, keep in mind that maintaining healthy sleep habits, staying physically active, eating to nourish, and minimizing the use of mood-altering substances are self-care strategies that will set you up for success during and after the holidays.

The Student Wellness Centres are open until 4:15 pm on December 23, and there are still appointments available if you would like to speak with someone about coping with your stress at this time of year.  Give us a call to book an appointment:

Brantford students: 519.756.8228 x5803
Waterloo students: 519.884.0710 x3146