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Although the holidays can be some of the best times of the year, sometimes they can be really stressful. The high demands and pressures of shopping, cooking, baking, traveling, cleaning, hosting (the list can go on and on), can take a toll. Feeling overwhelmed, anxious, or depressed from these demands and pressure is totally normal.

Here are a few things that could be causing this holiday stress, along with some tricks to avoiding this stress.

Stressors

  • Doing too much: in other words, you’re spreading yourself too thin. This is easy to do with the constant holiday demands. You can prevent feeling overwhelmed by looking at setting priorities and schedules, below.
  • Spending too much: financial stress can be such a big stressor and cause anxiety. Just because it’s the holidays, does not mean you should be overstretching your finances. Remember, the holidays are about spending time with loved ones, not what your bringing/giving.

Avoiding Holiday Stress

  • Set priorities: in order to prevent yourself from feeling overwhelmed, figure out what’s most important to you. Is your biggest priority seeing your family? Or is it making a really good holiday meal? Focus on whatever feels the most important to you rather than all the extra activities.
  • Set budgets: setting a budget to avoiding overspending will definitely help with holiday stress, and it will also help keep you more organized in general. You could set a dollar limit for everyone’s gifts to ensure you won’t overspend.
  • Set schedules: along with setting priorities, another way to prevent feeling overwhelmed is to create a schedule. One day could be dedicated to shopping, while another to cooking, and so on. The schedule should align with your priorities, in order to make sure you get everything you want to be done.
  • Breathe: I guess this should’ve been mentioned first, but taking time to enjoy the moment is most important. It’s not often that you’re surrounded by the people who matter most, so it’s important to be in the moment.

Written by GUADS staff member Toni with contributions from www.mayoclinic.com and www.verywellmind.com