Beat Holiday Blues With These 11 Easy Tips

Tis the season to be jolly!! Christmas music blares from the speakers at your local department store and you head towards the nearest exit. Your neighborhood is filled with decorated homes, all except yours. You turn out all the lights when the carolers approach your home. The time and weather changes have you staying in and sleeping an unrealistic amount of hours. Phone calls, texts and holiday party invites go unanswered. Before you know it you’re drowning your feelings in a bottle of wine and a gallon of ice cream. Have you ever been in this place? Do you know someone else that have been in this place? If you answered yes to either of these questions, it’s sounds like a case of the holiday blues. But, what can you do when holiday blues kicks in and it’s proven to be no easy fight to win?

Holiday Blues is defined as feelings of melancholy, sadness, or depression during the holidays. While the holiday’s are supposed to be a time for happiness, togetherness and cheer, it’s frequently the opposite.

This can stem from a number of reasons:

• lost of loved ones
• family and friends are at a distance
• traumatic holiday experiences
• loneliness
• financial stress
• dreary weather and so much more

The most important thing is to remember that you are not alone. Recognize when you need to seek professional support and when it’s just a funk that can easily be solved when your best friend shows up at your door with a cute dress & heels and drags you out of bed.

Want to beat holiday blues? Here’s how…

Beat Holiday Blues With These 11 Easy Tips

Keep Busy

When you are in a funk you should avoid drowning in your sorrows at all costs. Keep busy and surround yourself around positive, supportive people. Around the holidays, there are always local events going on, go! It’s the time of year where charity events are fluid, and your inbox is flooded with cute holiday themed parties from family and friends. Set some time aside to patronize some!

With plates full and cocktails flowing, why wait until the new year to start an exercise regimen. This is the perfect time to blow off some steam and get those Endorphin’s flowing. Also, take advantage of the down time by using it plan for the New Year. Get your life in order, set some goals, organize your closet, or clean out your storage. No matter what you decide, just fight those ill feelings by keeping busy.

Host Holiday Events

There’s a great chance that all the holiday invites you receive won’t work with your schedule. If this is the case you can host your own holiday event! Select a cute little theme and send out invites. It doesn’t have to be a big hoopla. A small intimate gathering with a fun theme goes a long way. You’ll find yourself consumed with planning it, keeping track of RSVP’s, decorating and cooking that you will be too busy to hear your bed calling. This is a great way to beat holiday blues! The laughter and memories being created will have you feeling jolly in no time.

Keep Family Traditions Alive

Nothing screams family and holidays more than your Grandma’s sweet potato pie recipe! If you are in a funk during the holidays, cheer yourself up by keeping family traditions alive. Could it be that you all open gifts on Christmas Eve? Is it that your family always does a gift exchange? Does your family have a giant holiday sleepover for the entire family? Do all the women in the family get together and cook the entire holiday meal together in the kitchen? Hold on to the tradition’s and memories of the past for comfort to get you through the joys of the holiday’s. It’s important to past down these same traditions to your children as well. They are the future and they are watching. So whether its a recipe, an event, decor, or what you wear, embrace what makes your family’s history special and seek comfort through the memories.

Create New Holiday Traditions

This is great opportunity for you to create holiday traditions of your own. If you have a family of your own, create holiday traditions to pass down to your children. If you are single, you can create an annual holiday event that your family and friends look forward to every year. If you are self absorbed then you can create a classic holiday cocktail that you sip every Christmas Eve or maybe it’s a must that you put up your Christmas tree before Thanksgiving. Whatever new holiday tradition you create, smile, laugh and dig into your happy place so that all your days will be merry and bright.

FaceTime With Family and Friends

Several reasons may create barriers that keep you from celebrating the holidays with family and friends. However, a phone call or video chat is a MUST during the holiday season and most importantly on the actual holiday itself to pick up your spirits. A Happy Thanksgiving, a Merry Christmas or Happy New Year goes a long way! It some how makes you feel thought about when the text comes through or when you send one and receive a warm response back. Being able to see your love ones faces by video chat is a warming feeling as well. I relocated over six years ago and have not always been able to spend holidays with my family. I can honestly attest to communicating with family and friends on the holiday being a way to fill the loneliness. Don’t ever let a holiday go by without communication with your love ones, you never know when it could be the last.

Reminisce Over Old Holiday Memories

Pull out your old family photos from the good times had on past holidays. Reminisce! Embrace the slight chuckle that’s brought from the recollection of the silly stories from your uncle. Smile at the pictures you have of the cousins lined up around the Christmas Tree. Take in the sights of you posing with your grandparents at the dinner table for Thanksgiving. Show them to your kids! Explain to them their family’s history and traditions. Show them to your friends! Help them get to know you better. You could even put your favorite family photos on the mantle this holiday as a reminder that your love ones are still with you in spirit whether deceased, near or far. Close your eyes and dream a little dream!

Volunteer

Giving back at any time of the year is great! However, it’s even better to give back during the holidays. Beat your holiday blues by helping others in need. It will be a constant reminder that your situation is not so bad after all. It will hopefully lift your mood and give you a sense of gratitude. Don’t be a Grinch! Spread some holiday cheer by donating to a family in need. You could also help by feeding the homeless on Thanksgiving. There are so many ways to offer assistance at this time of year. Consider your local churches, non-profits and other local organizations. This is also another way to keep busy.

Travel

Maybe you can’t travel thousands of miles to be with your family. Maybe you can’t take a ten hour flight to another country to be with loved ones. However, you can take a three to four hour road trip. Switching up your scenery this holiday will surely help you kick holiday blues! We often find getting out of our normal four walls is an instant mood changer. Sometimes our busy lives coupled with the hustle and bustle of the holiday season can leave us searching for a moment to breathe. This is the perfect opportunity to switch things up and clear your head. A family trip would be great! A friends trip would be so fun! A baecation would be even better! Of course, a solo trip would give you the opportunity to do things on your own terms. Start planning now…

Find Ways To Laugh

Netflix and chill? There are so many funny holiday movies that I can’t wait to watch year after year. Grab your bae and have a date night in collecting laughs! Check your local venues for comedy nights or maybe you’ll opt for a family movie night in snuggled up with your kids. Try to find ways to laugh! Call that funny friend that’s sure to get you laughing, as always! I’m sure you heard of the saying ” Laughter is good for the soul”. So laugh your way to peace and prosperity this holiday season!

Stay Off Social Media

If you are lonely, missing your family and friends, or just had a breakup with your guy, the last thing you want to do is log onto social media and see your news feed filled with people having a merry good time. The pics of couples kissing under the mistletoe may just send you diving into bed head first! If you aren’t on social media you’ll have nothing to compare your life to. Use your  time being more productive. Don’t do it, just stay off of social media!

Plan For The New Year

The last couple months of the year are my favorite. I get so excited for the New Year. No matter how great of a year I’ve had, it’s something about the fresh start that gets my wheels turning. I think the holidays is a great time to start planning for the New Year, try it! Create yourself a vision board or host a vision board party. This will definitely lift your mood as you set goals and become inspired. Plan yourself right up out of that funk! The visual helps you see that better days are ahead.

Sometimes we don’t always realize it but we have so much to be happy and thankful for…

“May the Spirit of the Holidays be with you throughout the New Year”

What’s your recipe for kicking holiday blues?

What are you waiting for!?! GO OWN YOUR FANCY!!!