How to Practice Self-Care During the Holidays

Many people look forward to the holidays for the festivities and reconnecting with loved ones. While the winter season can be joyous, it can also feel stressful, isolating, or depressing.

According to a recent survey, 79% of participants push their health needs to the side during the holidays. The survey also indicated respondents found the holidays “more stressful” than tax season.

Between the pressures of balancing time, buying gifts, keeping commitments, and spreading your time thin, it can be easy to “lose yourself” during the hustle and bustle associated with the season. It’s important to practice self-care during the holidays all year, but during the holidays, it’s a good idea to remember while you’re trying to make everyone else happy, to send yourself some love too.

Set Boundaries

It’s easy to get caught up in dinners, parties, and other social events planned throughout the holidays. Not to mention the shopping, decorating, and other activities accompanying the season. To avoid overwhelming yourself, try to set boundaries.

Know your limits, don’t over-schedule yourself, and also let loved ones know your boundaries, so there are no expectations and everyone is clear about your needs. This will help you manage the holidays at a level that’s comfortable for you.

Get Plenty of Sleep and Eat Healthily

Lots of activities tend to accompany the holidays, including travel, cleaning, cooking, and shopping, to name a few. As a result, it can be very easy to neglect basic things such as sleep and diet. Be sure to be mindful to eat well and drink plenty of water. Also, remember to continue to sleep at reasonable hours. Maybe even spoil yourself a bit by sleeping in a few days to offset the times you might be up later than usual for social gatherings.

Simplify Travel

Are you planning to travel around the holidays? Whether you’re flying across the country or taking road trips to attend different social events, try to minimize the stress.

• Don’t feel obligated to accept every invitation
• Try to schedule direct flights where possible
• Plan to take road trips with another person
• Leave yourself time before and after trips for some “downtime”

During the winter festivities, people tend to run from place to place. One thing you can do is sit down and thoughtfully decide how much travel you want to do. Then consider what’s realistically doable without leading to exhaustion or stress after the holidays are finished.

Manage Gift Giving

Holidays, for many people, are a time to participate in gift-giving. While shopping for people and seeing their faces light up at the sight of a thoughtful gift might make you happy, keep in mind to limit yourself if gift-giving will lead to financial stress.

It’s easy to get caught up in the thrill of the season, but remember, the credit card bills will roll in during January. To offset any budgetary limitations you might have, consider making gifts. In many cases, handmade gifts and homemade goodies are the best ones and most appreciated. Not to mention, it could lead to some fun new hobbies!

Schedule Self-Care Activities

The holidays are usually so hectic that people often forget to maintain healthy routines. Be sure to schedule self-care activities for yourself. Make time to:

• Exercise
• Go for walks
• Take a bike ride
• Meditate
• Do yoga
• Watch a movie
• Read a book
• Spend time on hobbies
• Soak in warm baths

These are just a few ideas. Essentially, take a few minutes to think about what makes you feel good and gives you energy, and then plan to do it.

Try to Keep to a Routine

After the holidays are over, it can be difficult to get back on routine. To make it easier for you to get consistent sleep and keep your energy levels up, try to stay on schedule as much as possible. If you go to the gym three times a week, plan to continue to do so. Stick with any other personal routines you normally adhere to.

Consider Taking Prevagen to Prioritize Healthy Brain Function

Committing to self-care may be harder than it sounds. While setting boundaries, knowing your limits, and practicing self-care, make sure this includes “you” time. Prioritizing your physical and emotional health is important.

Another thing you can do is to consider taking Prevagen. Prevagen is a supplement to support cognitive function. Prevagen contains a unique ingredient called apoaequorin. Learn more about the benefits of taking Prevagen today!