The holiday season is quickly approaching, and although it is typically a time of joy, cheerfulness and optimistic expectations for the upcoming year. Unfortunately, the holiday season can also bring about some unwelcome guests including stress and depression.
Holidays can offer parties, shopping, family gatherings and long to-do lists. However, for many people it can also become a time of self-evaluation. This may include loneliness, reflection on past disappointments and uncertainty about to the future. By allowing our minds to shift focus, we often lose connection with the present moment. One way of slowing down the intensity during this time of year is by integrating Mindfulness into your daily routine.
Practicing Mindfulness, especially during the holidays, may assist in reducing the intensity of negative feelings that may arise. Mindfulness is described, by Jon Kabat-Zinn PhD as “paying attention, on purpose, in the present moment, non-judgmentally”. By doing this, one can begin to cultivate attention and awareness to the present moment and current situations, rather than reacting to intense emotions, fears and irrational thinking which we so often believe to be true. By gaining insight and awareness we can begin to make different choices for ourselves.
Here are some tips for implementing Mindfulness during the holiday season as well as in daily life:
– Accept the fact that the holidays can bring about stress.
– Acknowledge your feelings:
Holidays can trigger various emotions for a person for any number of reasons. Especially for one has experienced a previous trauma or loss. It is healthy to acknowledge your feelings and express them. Feelings don’t disappear just because it’s a holiday.
– Develop Awareness and positive self-care:
By paying attention to your thoughts, feelings, and senses you can use that information in a constructive manner to make healthier decisions for yourself.
