Your Guide to a Stress-Free Holiday Season

Family friends have fun together in winter eating food on a wooden table – vertical top view and concept of friendship and caucasian people enjoying celebration at home or restaurant

It’s almost the holiday season, a time to be merry and joyful. This time seems like the perfect opportunity to take a break, unwind and have a good time with family and friends, right? On the contrary, making preparations for family coming out of town, making personal travel arrangements, and picking out gifts can be stressful.

According to a study conducted by the American Psychological Association, 38% of the participants indicated a steep rise in their stress levels during the holidays. Another survey that was done by the Principal Financial Group also showed that 53% are financially stressed due to holiday spending.

Despite the disappointing statistics, the holiday season should be enjoyed and can be made less stressful. Here’s how you can do just that.

Plan Ahead

Planning well ahead of time is a sure way to reduce stress during the holiday season. From gifts to cards, travel arrangements, and sight-seeing, everything can and should be planned. 

It is easy to procrastinate because the holiday season may seem far off. But postponing the planning will add up to your stress. Planning will help you focus on the essential things and cut out the unnecessary stuff.

Check And Double-Check

During the holidays, the last thing you want is to find out that the tap is not flowing or your refrigerator is not working. Such mishaps are likely to increase your stress levels. Therefore, check everything thoroughly from the toilet, showers, water heaters, and general plumbing. 

Have a handyman check your plumbing, household appliances, and gadgets so that they are in pristine condition for the holiday season. West LA water heater company can help you double-check and fix your water heater. 

Another thing to pay close attention to is travel arrangements. This is one of the things that can change at any time and affect your entire schedule for the holiday season. 

Whether you are traveling with friends, or your family is traveling to come to be with you, you should continuously check in with the travel agency to make sure everything is intact and make quick alternate decisions when things are not. 

Buy Early And Stock Up

It is always advisable to start shopping early and stock up for the holiday season to avoid delayed gifts or sold-out stock. A recent survey by Coresight Research revealed that more than 25% of shoppers are expected to start their holiday shopping much earlier than usual. 

This is a trend according to the survey that goes back almost a decade. This makes a compelling point to start shopping early and stock up for the holiday season.

It doesn’t matter what you’re shopping for, whether it’s gifts, food, snacks, drinks, or even Christmas trees – do it ahead of time. If not you risk buying them when they are out of stock and when prices are sky-high.

Spend Quality Time with Friends and Family

One of the reasons we love the holiday season is the time we get to spend with family and friends. However, for some time now, the time spent with family and friends has reduced quality. 

Several people can gather in one place, but there will be little to no interaction, and you may find everyone looking into one screen or the other. Phones, tablets, and TV have reduced the quality of time that the family used to spend together.

To prevent this, try to find fun things to do together. For example, you can engage in craft-making, checking out the lights, or playing in the snow. You could also eat dinner together, afterward, watch a Christmas movie and then have a game night afterward. 

This will go a long way to strengthen the bonds you have with each other. Additionally, during conversations, try to avoid difficult topics such as politics. Instead, reminisce on the happy times you have had together or better still, create new memories.

Make New Traditions

A great way to let off some steam is by forming Christmas or family traditions. There are several Christmas traditions that you can adopt as a family. They include picking out a new ornament, making a gingerbread house, watching a tree lighting, or ice skating outdoors.

Put Yourself First

If you don’t have family coming over and you don’t have many friends, you could get selfish and put yourself first. You may have worked for the whole year, without making ample time for self-care. Take this opportunity to rejuvenate or do something you really like and focus on having a good time.

Check Your Expenses

A significant stressor during the holiday season is related to all the spending, as truthfully, the season has become extremely commercialized. Most people spend a substantial amount during Christmas – mostly from their savings, credit cards, or from funds meant for other purposes. Therefore, consider what your finances will look like after the holidays before going on that spending spree.

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