Christmas can be a beautifully calm time for some but an anxiety riven stress week for others. Even if you’re not up to your eyes in stress it can be hard to take time to reflect and treat yourself over the busy time. Thinking about this I came up with ten ways that I’ve used to ensure a calm Christmas period previously and thought they might be useful!
1. Spend time outside. Winter can be gorgeous in Britain so get out into it. Walk, experience and explore. I’ve written previously about my love of mindful walking and how good it is to bring some clarity to the mind so pull on those wellies and bobble hats and head out into the outside world
2. Create something. Use the creative part of your brain even if, and possibly even more so, it doesn’t come naturally. If you bake, bake. If you draw, draw. Make Christmas cards or decorations. Just lose yourself in a creative flurry
3. Make time for yoga. Even if it’s not part of your day to day life give your body what it needs. This could be a slow and restorative practice or fast and body blasting. One of my favourite festive yoga moments is doing a slow restorative, twisting practice on Boxing Day morning. Just what your body needs after the day before, huddled over board games and full of lovely food. How about joining me in the below routine this year?
4. Organise something to look forward to in the new year so all the pressure isn’t on Christmas day. We all put so much pressure on Christmas being perfect so how about organising a day out, weekend away or date with friends in January so Christmas isn’t the be all and end all
5. Light a candle, snuggle in a chair and gift yourself ten minutes to think, journal and read. It’s only ten minutes out of the day so won’t stop you getting anything done but will just give you a break from the crazy!
6. Take part in some sort of community activity. This could be helping at the local food bank or homeless shelter or as simple as showing your support to the local Christmas fair or market. Giving your support to a local charity or business will help give you those lovely festive fuzzy feels
7. Don’t make too many plans, running from one event to the next will only leave you feeling overwhelmed and like you want to hide from the world. Keep it simple
8. Boil the kettle and brew up your favourite tea. My favourite at the moment is green tea and honey. Green tea filled with the calming influence of theanine and antioxidants and honey with its antibiotic qualities means I’m hopefully calming myself and fighting off those cold symptoms at the same time!
9. Don’t get caught up in the present buying frenzy. It’s a cliché but the older I get the more I appreciate home made gifts, little treats or presents to be in experience form, like a weekend away or day out. Don’t feel like you have to pile the presents up under the tree
10. And finally it’s on everyone’s lips but honestly give meditation a go. Don’t make it into a scary event of sitting for hours cross legged but take twenty minutes to just be aware of your body and breath and sit with that. Practice laid down if it’s more comfy or propped up with cushions and slow the breath, be aware of your body and let any thoughts that come into your brain pass right through
I hope there’s a few little ideas in there that might help if you are feeling overwhelmed by the festive period but remember ultimately it’s only just another day so no need to get stressed
Namaste, Merry Christmas and enjoy