Evidence of Holiday Stress? Decompression ideas?

[Alix]

This year is a bit odd for me. Normally I would have been running full tilt toward the holidays for some time now. This year, I'm taking it easy and because of that I am noticing what I suspect is a lot of stress about the season in other folks.

What I mean is people seem to be grumping and battling about the oddest things lately. About some phrase that struck someone the wrong way, or about whether or not an electric oven has a heat vent.

Wow. Am I out to lunch here? Does that happen all the time and I'm just noticing now? Anyone notice this stuff too?

Anyone have any good ideas about how to decompress from the stress of the season?

 

[bethzaring]

The biggest stress reducer I have accomplished is how I handle Christmas purchases. I used to put hugh demands on myself to make most of the presents I gave. About five years ago, I completely not only stopped that, but I purchase/make no presents anymore for the extended family. Dh and I make a donation to Heifer International and the relatives receive their nice cards explaining that a donation was made in their name. The families love that they do not receive yet one more gift, and that money was given in a meaningful way.

 

[Alix]

I like that beth. Great ideas. We don't send gifts to the extended family either. The last few years I've been scaling back so that I am just giving to Ken and the girls and whoever is here to open gifts Christmas morning. And we are NOT extravagant either. My biggest spending goes into the stockings. (And do you know...I can't find any Silly String this year dang it all!)

 

[suziquzie]

I do the same thing, I get stressed because I try to make all my gifts (cook, knit, crochet, cross-stitch) and never manage to get it all done, then get upset because I ended up getting nothing for someone.
Anyway when I start getting all worked up, I just take a break, and go into the kids rooms to play toys with them. They're really what it's all about anyway isn't it?
Got no little kids? Buy yourself some legos! They work wonders!

 

[simplicity]

Beth - Heifer International is a great organization.

One by one, we can all make a difference.

 

[Loprraine]

Anyone have any good ideas about how to decompress from the stress of the season?

I'm seeing a lot of it with my staff. And, they are all getting sick. Here's what I do:

Try to eat properly. Between business lunches, suppers, parties, it's easy not to eat a balanced diet. I've bowed out of most of the lunches etc this year.

Get enough sleep. If I don't get my regular beauty sleep I get very cranky.

Make time for myself. I could have made some mini quiches last night, or more pecan balls, or put up more decorations. But, I didn't feel like doing that, instead I opted to read a great book. Everyone needs time out. The sky will not fall on my head if they don't get their quiches.

 

[kadesma]

I've always been at full steam during the holidays, had the shopping done by thanksgiving and the tree up the next day..Falling ill the way I did really changed this years Christmas festivities...I don't have a lot of time to run about shopping now, so a lot is done on line..The little ones are my top priority and I do have all their things here and am wrapping them. My own children are getting gift cards and one other thing under the tree. The focus this year is some good food and just being together..Had they not insisted I get help several months ago, who knows what this Christmas would be like..So, for me the gifts, are my family and the love they bring..From now on, the family together will be all we really need. Anything else will be an extra..
And if you need a great stress reliever, have your 7 year old grandson to spend the day and night with you and make chocolate chip,M&M cookies
kadesma

 

[csalt]

Illness is not something we would choose but it's a great way of putting a different set of lenses on our perspective on things isn't it.
I found this verse in a book I was reading and it helps (me) to put things into perspective.

Let There Be Light
From the point
From which all life flows
It flows to me. My part is to accept this life
Consciously
As a manifestation of God on earth.
It is I
Who brings light and love
Into this existence.
No angelic being can do it for me.
Yes, heartily do I accept
This responsibility!
The God in me.
From “ The Essene Book of Meditations and blessings”​

 

[auntdot]

Now that there are the two of us we try to take the holidays easy.

We purchase gifts throughout the year. No we are not organized, just learned many years ago to hate the pressure of Christmas.

The second year we were married, after we had gone crazy shopping the first Christmas season we were married, I decided we were going to buy everything for everyone the day after Thanksgiving.

We came close and it made the season so much calmer.

And now we purchase a lot on the net. Hate the crowding of the stores.

We now do as little or as much as we feel like at Christmas.

It makes the season a lot happier.

 

[GotGarlic]

When we first bought our house, we went all out at Christmas, decorating inside and out, going shopping, sending cards, having parties, etc., etc. Now it depends more on whether we have an exchange student with us or not (we host every other year). We don't have one this year, so I volunteered as a hostess for our civic league's holiday home tour and loaned a lot of my decorations to the young couple who opened their house, made a casserole for the potluck after the tour, and put a Christmas flag and wreath on the porch. That's about it

Health issues are a problem, too. I was very sick earlier this year; when I got better, DH had shoulder surgery; now I'm scheduled to have my gallbladder removed on Monday. So I'm doing my shopping online and not getting too worked up over whatever doesn't get done.

Glad to hear yours went well, Alix. Because of previous surgeries, I'm probably looking at a month at home, but I'm thankful I have good health insurance and I'm looking forward to starting a class at the local university in January. And I'm thinking Katie and Buck's Christmas morning bourbon and ginger ale is looking better and better although I'll probably go for rum and Coke with grenadine, assuming the doctor says it's ok.

 

[csalt]

Sending you very sincere good wishes for 100% successful surgery on Monday Got Garlic, and hoping for a speedy recovery and not too uncomfortable Christmas.

 

[VeraBlue]

This may sound crazy, considering I spend all day in a kitchen, but, nothing soothes me like cooking.

Well....bourbon works pretty well, too. I like to catch the christmas shows, too; especially The Grinch, or Santa Claus is Coming To Town.

A cup of tea and a slice of gingerbread works wonders.

Finally, one of the best things is to do something holiday-ish. Not shopping, not mailing, not baking....go see or do something holiday related. Take a ride in the car to look at people's christmas lights. Get a cup of hot chocolate afterwards..(and put some bourbon in it)


I don't think people are more stressed, I just think people are stressed, in general. You absolutely have to find the humor in a situation or you'll pop an artery.

 

[CharlieD]

All I can say, Thank G-d Holidays are over. Now I'm looking forward for some rest and some decompration. This year i out did my self and am extremely tired. So tired that I couldn't even get in the middle of arguing about the "went".

 

[TanyaK]

As there's no young children in our family anymore we stopped giving gifts to each other a couple of years ago and it made a huge difference in stress levels! Now it's just a normal lunch outside on Xmas day and everyone brings something so that the hostess doesn't have to work too hard. I live in a big suburb by the sea which goes crazy every December as the whole of the country seems to want to spend their summer holidays here so even going to the mall for groceries is a very stressful experience. So this year after Xmas we're going camping inland in a little village surrounded by wine farms and we'll leave the seaside for the visitors !

 

[Mel!]

Hello Alix

I am a very laid back holiday person. Certainly not a stressful time for me. I get very excited about all Christmassy things.
When I used to live in Ireland shopping at this time of the year was very stressful because the streets and shops were so crowded and the shop assistants so grumpy. Here in Germany Christmas is a more sedate affair so no stress here.

Mel

 

[ronjohn55]

I'm stressed. I admit it. Too much going on, too little time, and then throw in other stuff too.

I'm just trying to keep my head down, stay quiet, and hope things settle down after Christmas.

John

 

[*amy*]

This year is a bit odd for me. Normally I would have been running full tilt toward the holidays for some time now. This year, I'm taking it easy and because of that I am noticing what I suspect is a lot of stress about the season in other folks.

What I mean is people seem to be grumping and battling about the oddest things lately. About some phrase that struck someone the wrong way, or about whether or not an electric oven has a heat vent.

Wow. Am I out to lunch here? Does that happen all the time and I'm just noticing now? Anyone notice this stuff too?

Anyone have any good ideas about how to decompress from the stress of the season?

I had to turn this over a few times before, or if, I replied. Re Evidence of Stress referring to the Board, & asking/recommending people decompress & suggestions? Stating does this happen all the time or have you been out to lunch & just noticing now? ...And a phrase that struck someone the wrong way. As you know, there are uncalled for remarks here from time to time. One can dismiss it or try to address it in an appropriate manner.

If you are asking for suggestions for Holiday relief that you don't need, I am not clear as to the reason message you are putting out here. There is a venting thread if someone needs one.

 

[Alix]

Amy, if you're confused, feel free to ignore this thread. And anything I feel needs to be addressed in a PM is done so let me assure you. Clearly not all my threads please you, and thats just fine. You don't need to participate in any of them if you don't want to. Thats the beauty of this place, you can pick and choose what you read and write. This thread has nothing to do with my Admin status here, it is about an observation about things I have seen lately. (Does everything I write need to be about being an Admin? YIKES am I in trouble!!)And for the record, only one of the points I mentioned was here at DC, the other was somewhere else entirely. Does that matter? Evidence is evidence. And I was questioning whether those were indeed evidence of holiday stress. I also posted so that we can all share ideas on how to decompress. One of the things I love about this place is that we share things that help us and we learn from one another every day. I think learning to acknowledge things about yourself (like, "do the holidays stress me out?") and finding ways to deal with stress are both important, don't you?

Hope that helps clarify whatever was confusing you. (Oops, I see you have edited some of your post. Still, I hope I covered what you didn't understand)

Ronjohn, good plan buddy, my thoughts and prayers are with you my friend.
Mel, I'm a Christmas junkie too. I love to look at the lights and sing at the top of my lungs while baking etc.
Vera, cooking is the great balm isn't it? I love to walk and look at lights too, we haven't done that yet this year, I think we need to book a time for it soon.
GotGarlic, hope it goes as well for you as it did for me. I hope you heal quick as a wink and are ready to power down all the Christmas treats you can hold. I'll fire off a PM to you as some of the stuff is not fit for public reading. LOL.
Those of you who suggest early shopping etc, very good idea.

Love all I have read so far and hope we all keep sharing. My personal remedy for getting in the spirit, or decompressing is to go to a Christmas concert or two and see those bright shining little kid faces just filled with joy and hope. That does more for me than most anything.

 

[LEFSElover]

I like that beth. Great ideas. We don't send gifts to the extended family either. The last few years I've been scaling back so that I am just giving to Ken and the girls and whoever is here to open gifts Christmas morning. And we are NOT extravagant either. My biggest spending goes into the stockings. (And do you know...I can't find any Silly String this year dang it all!)

I'm ready to hit the bottlemyself...

Since there are a couple of threads on this subject, I think it's a safe bet that many are stressed, but here
let me ease yours a little..........

 

[Alix]

Lefse my friend, you ROCK! I wonder if it would arrive in time??