Say Goodbye to Holiday Stress with These Five Tips

What is the first summer holiday that you ever had? It probably involved plenty of sun water, and sand. Holidays are a great way to break away from the monotony of your daily routine and taking some much-needed time off from work and family-related stress to focus on your inner peace and well-being.

Travelling with friends and family also fortifies relationships and helps people connect at a deeper, more spiritual level.

Holidays are usually a busy time for professional and personal life which can leave people feeling stressed and overwhelmed

But, for people who aren’t able to take the time away from their jobs and businesses during the holidays, the amount of work and deadlines can take a toll on their mental and physical health. Holidays are usually a busy time in both professional and personal life but there are plenty of things you can do – even if you don’t have much free time on your plate – to alleviate stress.

Some of the tips mentioned below are effective all year round but during the holidays, people often leave them on the back burner, focusing on other tasks that demand their urgent attention. It doesn’t matter if you’re away at a sandy beach, basking in the warmth of the sun or stuck in a busy office with a stack of papers in front of you – relieving stress over the holidays is extremely important for employers and employees alike.

Always Make time for Physical Activity

There is no better treatment for stress and anxiety that exercise, according to Mayo Clinic. When your heart rate is elevated, your body releases the hormone called endorphins which take away some of the mental stress and leave you feeling happy and relaxed.

Even if you don’t have the time to spend hours in the gym you can take out 30 minutes during your lunchbreak for a brisk walk just so that you break away from the mundane office routine and breathe in some fresh air to help you destress and feel fresh throughout the rest of the day.

Your body releases a feel-good hormone called endorphins during exercise which can alleviate stress and lift your mood

Eat Healthy, Whole Foods

Looking after your gut is equivalent to looking after your happiness. Although it isn’t easy to focus on your diet during the holiday season, make sure you’re feeding your body whole, unprocessed foods instead of sugary treats and fast food. Unhealthy foods may give you pleasure momentarily but after they enter your system, they do nothing but damage to your body.

Often sugary foods or high-carb meals will raise blood sugar levels too quickly, leaving you feeling lethargic after the sugar rush comes off, which also affects your mood negatively. Make sure to feed your body healthy foods with a good nutritional balance to stay physically and mentally well during the stressful holiday period.

Plan Early

If you’re anticipating a busy work schedule during the holidays, learn to master to-do lists beforehand so that you’re prepared for the tasks ahead of time.

Preparing a schedule will help you stay organized and keep you from feeling overwhelmed when the holidays come around. Make your to-do-list so that the tasks are ordered by their priority. This way you’ll have a better idea about what needs your urgent attention and which tasks can wait.

If you’re an employer, try to be more understanding and generous towards the workers so that there is less stress in the office during the busy holiday season

Be Generous with Employees

If you’re an employer or manager handling a busy workforce during the holidays, its important to take a generous approach and let the employees take breaks if they need them.

If someone can’t make it to a meeting because of family responsibilities or a personal matter, try to understand the situation and let them take the time off. Once your employees see your generosity and realize that they have people around them who care about their well-being, they will feel less stressed and overwhelmed at work.

Don’t be Too Hard on Yourself

Everyone is feeling stressed during the holidays, and when there is so much to do around you, it is quite easy to take things personally and beat yourself up on the smallest mistake.

This will only make the problem worse and leave you feeling mores stressed. If someone you work with has a short temper, try to understand that they’re under the same pressure as you are and it isn’t worth spending time stressing about the way others think or act.