Positive Young Minds Psychology
  • COUNSELLING
    • Services >
      • Counselling for Children and Adolescents >
        • Client Resources
        • Cancellation policy
        • Confident Parenting >
          • How to talk to teens
          • Happiness Habits
    • Wellbeing Resources
    • What is Mindfulness? >
      • Mindfulness For Children
      • For Teens
      • For Parents
      • Some science behind mindfulness
  • About Kim
    • Living the Mindful Way (blog)
  • The Victorian Psychologists' Networking Group
    • Essential Self-Care for Psychologists
    • Victorian Psychologists' Networking Group Membership Resources
  • FAQ

Creating Calm, Connection and Confidence (Blog)

THREE STEPS TO REDUCING STRESS ON CHRISTMAS DAY - STEP ONE

19/11/2018

 
Even though Christmas Day it is still over a month away, the anticipation and lead up to it can cause stress and anxiety. Depending on the amount of stress and anxiety the though of Christmas Day causes, it may be taking up quite a bit of your time and energy now.*   

There are three main steps to reducing stress on Christmas Day.  

The first step is to zoom in and identify exactly what is stressing you.  
Throwing your hands up and saying I hate Christmas, it's all too hard isn't actually that helpful.  What exactly is causing the stress.  Let's have a closer look at this.  

There can be complex reasons why this is not a great time for people.  There are six listed below.  How many stresses on the following list can you identify with?
What else not on the list i cuasing you stress.  

1. Finalising the hosting arrangements. Where to be, who is hosting it? Delegation of tasks. Who is bringing the pudding? Who is attending? In some families this is fairly stable, in other families it swaps and changes every year.

2. Working out the logistics of travel. Are you at one place for the day, or does your Christmas Day involve driving? Do you have enough time to digest before going from one Christmas meal to the next?

3. Loss. How can you honour someone who is no longer with you?  How do you deal with grief, your own and others around you?  
Picture
4.Recent separation/divorce.  Confirming shared care arrangements, or dealing with the reasons why the other parent may not want to/can't see the children over Christmas.  Managing your feelings and those of children involved..
.

5. Dislike of family members either due to resurfacing of old sibling rivalry, history of trauma (often secret), or a clash of values and lifestyles.

6. Troubling memories of previous Christmas. In our mind events that happened years ago feel like they just happened. You may or may not be aware that your mind is remembering these events. You may just notice that you don't really like Christmas.

And there are more stresses.  Comment below on what your greatest stress in on Christmas Day.

The next two steps are problem solving and acceptance.  
To create calm there are two main options available. You can problem solve (and this will be covered in other blog posts) or you can accept.

First though, comes awareness.


Have a closer look at your areas of stress and think about - do I want to solve this problem to reduce my stress, or will I need to accept it.

If you would like to join in the discussion of how to Create Christmas Calm just press the button below.


*If this level of stress and anxiety is interfering with your enjoyment of life, please seek professional help.  You can contact me using one of the methods below.
​
Do you have children aged 5-25?  Would you like to share your parenting journey with other parents?  You can subscribe and be kept informed about what is coming up in the Positive Young Minds community here. You can also pop over and join us on Facebook. 
CREATING CHRISTMAS CALM

Comments are closed.
    View my profile on LinkedIn

    Categories

    All
    Christmas
    Creating New Habits
    Family Dynamics
    Happiness
    Kindness
    Mindfulness
    Noticing Emotions
    Parenting
    School
    School Holidays
    Self Care
    Simplify
    Sleep
    Strengths

    RSS Feed

    Disclaimer

    * My aim is for these posts is meant to useful, interesting and/or inspiring. They are not designed to be used for therapy..  

    Archives

    December 2020
    November 2020
    October 2020
    September 2020
    August 2020
    July 2020
    June 2020
    February 2020
    January 2020
    December 2019
    November 2019
    September 2019
    August 2019
    July 2019
    June 2019
    April 2019
    March 2019
    February 2019
    January 2019
    December 2018
    November 2018
    August 2018
    July 2018
    May 2018
    April 2018
    March 2018
    February 2018
    January 2018
    December 2017
    September 2017
    August 2017
    July 2017
    June 2017
    May 2017
    April 2017
    March 2017
    February 2017
    January 2017
    October 2016
    September 2016
    February 2016
    December 2015
    August 2015
    July 2015
    February 2015
    December 2014
    October 2014
    August 2014
    June 2014

    Author

    Kim Dunn is a Child Psychologist and Founder of Positive Young Minds.  

Kim Dunn - Teaching mental health skills for a happier life

POSITIVE YOUNG MINDS - Counselling and assessments for children, adolescents and young adults.
THE VICTORIAN PSYCHOLOGISTS' NETWORKING GROUP - The community for psychologists looking to create a sustainable and enjoyable career. Through networking, mentoring, self-care and connection.
ESSENTIAL SELF-CARE FOR PSYCHOLOGISTS.  A self-paced course to help you create a practical and flexible self-care plan.


Phone no: +61 408 533 515

Picture

    Contact Kim Dunn

Submit
Photo used under Creative Commons from fred_v
  • COUNSELLING
    • Services >
      • Counselling for Children and Adolescents >
        • Client Resources
        • Cancellation policy
        • Confident Parenting >
          • How to talk to teens
          • Happiness Habits
    • Wellbeing Resources
    • What is Mindfulness? >
      • Mindfulness For Children
      • For Teens
      • For Parents
      • Some science behind mindfulness
  • About Kim
    • Living the Mindful Way (blog)
  • The Victorian Psychologists' Networking Group
    • Essential Self-Care for Psychologists
    • Victorian Psychologists' Networking Group Membership Resources
  • FAQ