Ways to ease anxiety during the busy holiday season
This post is sponsored by Rescue and includes a fun giveaway opportunity from me to you.
As you guys know, I’ve struggled with anxiety on and off throughout my life. I’m an anxious person by nature (it comes with the Type A territory) and usually find myself two steps ahead, wondering about “what’s next?”
Over time, I’ve also learned ways to manage my anxiety so it doesn’t get the best of me during stressful times. The holiday seasons are busy enough, but add in a move (and then another move) with two small children and two dogs, and it could be a recipe for stress-stravaganza. By putting the pieces in place to make sure I take care of my mental health, I’m able to enjoy the present moment and all of the beautiful events so much more.
Here are some of the ways I manage anxiety and stress during the holidays:
1. Meditate, even if it’s just for 5 minutes. Meditation changed my life. For so long, I tried to meditate, but wasn’t quite sure what I was doing. My brain would go crazy talking to itself and I’d give up. Finally, I learned HOW to meditate. All of my tips are in this post! Find a quiet spot that’s just for meditation, set a timer, and find a comfortable seated position. Close your eyes, and pay attention to your breath, focusing on deep inhales, and long cleansing exhales. Having a mantra helps me immensely, and helps me to push out the to-do lists and “what-ifs” that might pass by. The secret to meditation is not blocking your thoughts. It’s accepting them, letting them go, and bringing awareness back to your breath.
2. Practice yoga. I notice a huge decrease in anxiety levels when I make yoga a part of my life. It forces me to breathe and focus on the right now, instead of being two steps ahead in the future. Even though my fitness schedule is pretty full, and I can tell yoga has been lacking and am determined to bring it back into my life.
3. Keep moving. I find that I get the most stressed when I’m still. Moving around often throughout the days makes me feel good and is a great way to get out some anxiety.
Even if I take a break from work to walk the dogs or do a quick Fitness Marshall dance on YouTube, it’s always worth it.
4. Make a plan. This one is HUGE. If I have a plan, my mind doesn’t feel like it needs to wander, constantly keeping check of the priority checklist. I make my list, check things off as I go, and have non-negotiables for each day that must be done. Everything else can be pushed back if it needs to be.
5. Treat yourself. Make sure that you have something to look forward to that you enjoy each day. It’s so easy to get caught up in the chores and necessary tasks, that you can look back on the day and be like, “Whoa. I didn’t do anything fun.” I’m not talking about dropping everything to lounge at the beach (even though, let’s be real, that sounds AMAZING) but little things: a great workout, a cup of coffee with a friend, time to read a book that sucks you in, a dance party with the kiddos.
6. Talk to someone. If you find that your anxiety is overwhelming you, or just want an outsider to listen to you and determine reasonable solutions, I’m a huge advocate of talk therapy. Find a therapist nearby to talk to you; I don’t think you’ll regret it.
7. Find things that help you to feel calm and centered, and embrace them. Make sure you’re getting enough sleep, sunshine, water, nutrition, and exercise.
Sometimes you get into stressful situations, and there’s nothing you can do about it. Find a strategy that works for you to bring you back down to earth, and keep the stress from taking over. I was so thankful when my acupuncturist recommended the Rescue Remedy products. It was when P was very little and we were both dealing with medical issues, and I spent an entire acupuncture session crying. I told him my anxiety was really affecting me. He knew I was already talking to a therapist, and suggested the Rescue Remedy products as a way to calm myself down when I started to feel really antsy or stressed. Thankfully, they had a huge selection at Sprouts and I was able to pick up a bottle that day. Since then, I’ve carried it with me in my purse and use it when I’m feeling particularly stressed or anxious.
I love Rescue Remedy because it’s a great “in the moment” product. The second I start to feel anxiety, I spritz a little into my mouth, take a few deep breaths, and BOOM: more calm and centered. Of course, talk with your doc before adding anything new into your routine. These remedies were developed by a doctor 80 years ago, and are non-habit forming.
Rescue has a ton of products available (even a line for pets!) and they’re made with flower remedies.
Here are the ingredients:
5x (HPUS) dilution
Star of Bethlehem – Orithogalum umbellatum (for comfort and reassurance)
Rock Rose – Helianthemum (for confidence and composure)
Cherry Plum – Prunus cerasifera (for self control and stability)
Impatiens – Impatiens gladulifera (for patience and tolerance)
Clematis – Clematis vitalba (for focus and motivation)
27% Grape Based Brandy or Sunflower Based Glycerin as preservative (<— since it contains alcohol, keep out of the reach of kiddos)
And now, it’s giveaway time!
A lucky reader will win some of the things that help me feel calm and centered during this busy season:
-An Erin Condren planner of their choice
-A bottle of Rescue Remedy spray or drops
-A cheeky sleep mask
Enter via the widget below and I’ll pick the winner this Thursday night at midnight and announce in Friday Faves.
xoxo
Gina
My friends at Rescue sponsored this post, and I chose to personally sponsor the above giveaway. Thank you so much for your support regarding the sponsored posts that help support our family. Thank you so much for being here.
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YES! I love all of your tips and they come at such a good time. I’ve had anxiety since I was a kid and have more recently used my experiences to redefine how colleges approach mental illness. I love this giveaway and how open you are about your mental health. People need more of this.
follow you on instagram!
My favorite way to #stressless is to take a bath with a good book.
I follow you on IG!
Instead of fighting change, I am going to try to take a deep breath, acknowledge the change and move on. I tend to get caught up in hysteria when things don’t go according to “plan”. Type A for the win. lol
I follow on insta!
I’ll stress less by not freaking out if something doesn’t happen or a baked good doesn’t get made.
When I’m feeling really anxious or stressed out I find the best remedy for me is working out. It allows me to turn off my brain for an hour.
I’m Type A so I understand the whole anxiety thing! Rescue remedy looks great as does an Erin Condren planner! Also, I follow you on IG.
I think it is also helpful to say no to some things. It seems that everyone (friends, family, work, etc…) has a holiday party that you MUST attend, but I think it is important to prioritize.
Exercise helps me feel less stressed, too! Also, I follow you on Instagram.
Wow this post was just spot-on with timing as I’m going through quite a bit of anxiety lately! I’d never heard of Rescue before – I’ll have to check them out! I definitely agree with you that yoga and meditation are a couple things that help me immensely when my anxiety gears up! I know I need to be more consistent with both of them, especially during the holidays!
Thank you for this post! It is so helpful for me as a new mom. 🙂 I am a big essential oil believer so Stress Away from Young Living has helped balance my crazy. As always Gina, thanks for being real. Happy Holidays Xoxo
I already follow you on instagram 🙂
Who couldn’t use some tips for staying calm during the holidays!?! Thank you for these great ideas!
Thank you, this is just what I needed to read today!
Exercise helps me destress, and not packing so many events into my family’s schedule is key!
Running helps give me time to destress!
I follow on instagram!
Headspace is a great app for people learning how to meditate! You do have to pay after the first ten days, but it has definitely helped me quiet my mind 🙂
Such an amazing giveaway for this time of year. I can already envision needing these items to get through the holiday scrum. Retreating is the only sure answer for me.
I struggle with anxiety too. The best remedy for me is a good workout. I also get more stressed and anxious when I am still for too long. A good sweat always makes me feel better… or a glass of wine with my girlfriends. 😉
Live these suggestions! Currently in my 1st year of grad school to become a clinical therapist and – ironically – my anxiety and stress levels have been through the roof! Mindfulness exercises, physical exercise, and organization have been so helpful for me…I really want to try essential oils, too!
What great tips!
I’m a perfectionist and a bit anxious by nature. The holiday season definitely escalates that. When I find myself getting too caught up on making the perfect cookies, finding the perfect gift, keeping the house perfectly clean for guests, etc, I try to take a deep breath and make a mug of my favorite seasonal tea. It provides a moment of peace and clarity as I savor the flavors and remind myself what’s important.
Yes! I love this post! These are all awesome tips! I tend to get stressed out easily. With kids, work, the kids afterschool activities, church and so on it’s easy to do! I will be implementing some of these pronto!
What I do to stress less, but also is hard to keep up with, is just keeping to my workout schedule. Since I’m still a student (almost done with this PhD!) I go home for a few days and it’s so easy to just be lazy.
I’m anxious too and now pregnant for the first time – it’s a whole new ballgame!
I follow on instagram!
Great tips! It’s so funny how a time that is supposed to be focused on family and friends can be the most stressful.
My morning fitness sesh gets my anxiety level to be more manageable and makes me feel good about the day. On rest days I make sure to do some long stretching exercises or a slow flow yoga routine!
I stress less by taking time each morning to meditate.
My anxiety often gets the best of me, yoga does help and planning so I dont feel so over whelmed! thanks for your tips!!
I maintain my routine schedule as much as possible so that holiday events don’t take over my life. I also only go to those events that I want to attend (that are optional). It’s ok to say no to the others. 😉
I start planning and buying presents early in the year.
I absolutely LOVE the Rescue Remedy line. I get nervous flying (more being in an enclosed space for that long), and I use the drops every time I fly – they have made a huge difference. We went to Europe this summer, and I was really nervous about being on a plane for that long, but those drops really did help.
During the holidays, I #stressless by listening to old timey Christmas music (1940s and 1950s + Michael Buble). I also put our outdoor lights on a timer so when I come home from a long day of work and it’s dark and cold and kind of dreary, our house is all lit up. It brightens my spirit.
I love rescue remedy! Recently i’ve been trying to do yoga every evening (even if it’s just as simple as doing a chest-opening pose before bed)- otherwise my shoulders get so tight and hunched!
I follow you on Pinterest!
I follow you on Twitter!
I totally have used Rescue Remedy too. I also have started doing a lot more yoga over the course of December and have cut down on my “go hard” workouts and cardio. I find that cardio and intense workouts really up my anxiety and internal stress levels, but hot yoga and lots of walking really help keep my stress levels low. People don’t always think about the stress that can come from workouts, but it’s real.
What a great giveaway, especially for this time of year. I’m also Type A, so the stresses of trying to figure out my next career move, trying to get pregnant for several months now, and being homesick for my friends and family are starting to get to me. I’ve been making more of an effort at practicing yoga more frequently, so hopefully that will help.
Thanks for the tips! I am always stressed wanting everything to be perfect. Sometimes I just need to take a time out for myself and a deep breath!
I have learned to say “no” sometimes and that helps me stress less!
I follow you on IG 🙂
I am going to try to stress less this holiday season by getting gifts done super early and focusing on spending quality relaxing time with my loved ones. I’m lucky to be able to be with them for longer this year, so I want to soak that up 🙂
I’m about to move across the country as well, so this is super awesome timing.
Follow you on Insta!
I SWEAR by Rescue Remedy for my little doggie! We give him that before he goes on flights, and it totally works. And how do I destress? Well, pet my dog. ahahha! 🙂 GREAT giveaway, friend!
I stress less by focusing on what makes me happy. I like to bake so I plan on making Christmas cookies. I’m not very crafty, so I don’t try to add that into a full schedule.
I love the tips list. I need to print it and keep on the side of the frig or something.
And stop with the product recs, please. ; ) I already bought collagen and tooth tonic this week! LOL