Holidays Information presented by email greetings

Bust Holiday Stress!


The holidays will be here before you know it. Clear the way for greater joy, love and meaning this year by "busting" these sources of holiday stress:

1. TOO MUCH TO DO IN TOO LITTLE TIME

This week, set holiday priorities with your family. Discuss what traditions to keep, which to discard, and which new traditions to try.

Make a holiday to-do list NOW and create a realistic schedule for when to accomplish each item.

Avoid overscheduling.

Ask family members for help with holiday tasks.

2. LONG LINES IN STORES

Shop via catalog or Internet, and avoid stores on weekends.

If you're shopping with small children, take along snacks, books, toys or other items to make waiting in line more pleasant. Or, if you're sufficiently uninhibited, sing a holiday song with your child.

If you're shopping alone, use waiting time to relax and and center yourself with meditation or prayer. Try directing your attention to your breathing at your belly. Or practice observing the people around you through the eyes of compassion, without judging. Give thanks or pray for healing, peace, or other concerns close to your heart.

3. DIFFICULT RELATIVES

Take some quiet time to develop a plan for taking care of yourself around relatives who "get your goat."

Invest in yourself by using a therapist to help create a plan to protect your boundaries.

4. CRANKY KIDS

Think "low key" for a happy celebration with little ones. Remember that your small child thrives on your undivided attention and has a limited capacity to adjust to adults' "needs" to hurry.

Protect your child's naptime and playtime.

Spend "floor-time" with your child every day.

5. COMMERCIALISM

Create family traditions that involve giving to those in need.

Focus on low-cost or no-cost holiday traditions.

Help keep children's expectations realistic. For example, you might say "You'll get about the same amount of presents as you did on your birthday."

6. BILLS

Decide on a holiday budget for entertaining and gifts.

If credit cards make overspending too easy, stick to cash for holiday purchases.

7. LOSS

If you have lost a loved one, the holidays may intensify your grief. Explore ways to cope at www.griefnet.org/library/articles/hfa-tips.html or www.mayoclinic.com/invoke.cfm?id=FL00055.

If "holiday blues" persist or seem particularly intense, don't hesitate to reach out for professional help. Your physician or clergyperson can give you a referral.

8. POST-HOLIDAY LET-DOWN

Spread out the fun at least through the end of school vacation by planning an outing or a fun time at home for each day. A little forethought and planning can go a long way towards making you glad the holidays are coming - instead of just being glad when they're over. Your wisdom holds the key to holiday joy.

© 2004 Norma Schmidt, Coach, LLC

Norma Schmidt, Coach, LLC, specializes in helping working mothers create balance. She offers workshops, teleclasses and individual and group coaching. She also edits "The Balance Point," a free e=mail newsletter. Visit http://www.NormaSchmidt.com to learn more.


MORE RESOURCES:

Earthtimes (press release)

Research Findings Show Americans Manage Holiday Stress Better Than ...
MarketWatch - 11 hours ago
Within the survey, respondents were asked to rate their stress levels during the holiday season -- defined as the end of November through the first part of ...
Fruit cake or cash? Survey tracks employer gifts Boston Globe (registration)
Gifts.com Survey - Consumers Still See Merry in Christmas Earthtimes (press release)
all 17 news articles


Workers Seek Second Jobs to Make Ends Meet as Holidays Approach ...
MarketWatch - 7 hours ago
Of over 1400 respondents, 42% responded "Yes -- I am looking for a second job to make ends meet this holiday season," the No. 1 response to the survey. ...


Boston Globe (registration)

Road projects take a break for holidays
Gainesville Times, GA - 8 hours ago
By Jeff Gill Holiday travelers will have one less worry — lane closures — as they head to their Thanksgiving destinations. The Georgia Department of ...
Video: Bush Tries to Ease Air Travel Congestion AssociatedPress
You'll Be Spending the Holidays in the Airport if You Don't Pay ... NBC Bay Area
Five Ways to Get Home for the Holidays Kiplinger.com
Newsday - Boston Globe (registration)
all 934 news articles


Searchme Launches Shopping Feature in Time for Holidays to Make ...
MarketWatch - 13 hours ago
A search for other hot holiday gifts, like "Elmo Live" or "Disney Princess" would offer the same kinds of results. "Online shopping has offered a trusted, ...
Searchme Launches Shopping Feature in Time for Holidays to Make ... International Business Times
all 24 news articles


Vancouver Sun

Kohl's to offer wider price cuts for holidays- WSJ
Reuters - 21 hours ago
US retail chains traditionally launch their big holiday promotions immediately after Thanksgiving Day in late November, but many have started to offer ...
HP to extend holidays to cut costs Economic Times
India's Future Group to make tootpaste, detergents Reuters
all 2,597 news articles


Reuters

Retailers see not-so-jolly holidays
Boston Herald, United States - Nov 19, 2008
The Retailers Association of Massachusetts is forecasting a 1 percent drop in holiday sales this year based on feedback from its 3000 members, most of whose ...
Meaning of holidays not lost, merely transformed The Orion
Gift Card Hassles During The Holidays WNCT
Shoppers Avoiding Credit Card Use For Holidays WTVW
MarketWatch - Pittsburgh Channel.com
all 195 news articles


Business Wire (press release)

Kohl's to Offer Wider Price Cuts For Holidays
Wall Street Journal - Nov 19, 2008
Associated Press Last year on Black Friday, the kickoff of the holiday shopping season, the retailer didn't cut prices on its most expensive, ...
Retailers Lure Shoppers With Pre-Black Friday Sales TheDenverChannel.com
Kohl’s Reveals Tremendous After Thanksgiving Deals to Help ... Business Wire (press release)
all 11 news articles


Simply Better Ways to Safely Decorate for the Holidays
MarketWatch - 8 hours ago
IRVING, Texas, Nov 20, 2008 /PRNewswire via COMTEX/ -- Holiday lights are a common tradition this time of year. With First Choice Power's Simply Better ...


Fannie, Freddie to halt foreclosures over holidays
MarketWatch - 7 hours ago
By Wallace Witkowski , , ) said late Thursday that they will temporarily suspend foreclosures on occupied homes while the companies work on a streamlined ...


The Secret to Surviving the Holidays... Sound Sleep and the ...
MarketWatch - 10 hours ago
Couple those concerns with the excitement of the holidays, and getting a good night's rest can become even more difficult. Quality sleep -- like diet and ...

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