Christmas Day is meant to be about family. It’s supposed to be about coming together. It’s where everyone tries to put differences aside. Where festive cheer and joy are meant to be all around. For others there are the challenging conversations with the Ex about child care arrangements, the worries if everyone will ‘play nicely’ or how to handle Uncle George’s forthright views on partygate, Covid or the state of politics! But for many people Christmas is a day they dread and if the truth be told they’d rather be at home, on the sofa with the Quality Street watching Christmas movies!
Fear not! Here are our top tips to help you survive the day ….
You are responsible for enjoying Christmas Day – here’s how …
Start firstly by considering what’s important to you? What is the one thing that will ensure you start the day the right way or a tradition that’s important to you? … maybe it’s something simple like getting back into bed to have your breakfast, starting the day with a glass of Champagne, cooking dinner in your PJs, preparing the veg the night before, having your favourite Michael Buble Album on as you get up – the list is endless. Make that decision now and treat yourself. On the other hand your mental health is important so if you can equally avoid something or someone that you know will cause you stress, make the decision ahead of time about what you will do instead. Make these decisions ahead of time and stick to them.
Here’s my 3 top tips for calm and enjoyment on the big day itself …
- People who get on your nerves: notice what someone else is doing that is ‘grating’ for you and then ask yourself if what they’re doing really is a problem for you? (you’ll be surprised how often you ask yourself this question and you decide actually it’s not such a big deal and you move on). If the answer is yes, then ask yourself: what is it that you struggle with in that person that’s a reflection of yourself? – take a learning (which will allow the negative emotion to dissipate and enable you to take something positive).
- Change how you feel in an instant: You can change your emotional state in an instant – close your eyes and remember a time when you were really relaxed and happy (or however you’d rather feel instead). Go back to a specific memory and float down inside your body and see what your saw, hear what you heard and really feel those feelings of being totally relaxed and happy (or whatever feeling you’ve chosen). A great technique to use which will give you a few minutes of escape and the ability to get yourself back more emotionally balanced. Now, one thing to remember, this isn ‘t going to work if you’re trying this after your blood has started to boil! Do it now, ahead of time so it’s ready. To find out more about changing your emotional state in an instant, check out our NLP Anchoring Blog or our Anchoring YouTube video (learn anchoring in 10 mins!)
- Breath: when we get stressed our blood pressure usually goes up and our breathing becomes more rapid and shallow. This can make us feel light headed or a host of other unhelpful emotions such as anxiety, frustration, irritation etc. A great breathing technique to regain calm and control is a technique called ‘Tracing Hand’ – anyone can use it (I’ve had kids and executive directors doing it!) – check out this you tube video I’ve created for you. It’s really cool, because it only takes minutes and no-one else needs to know what you’re doing:
Remind yourself you have a choice – you can always choose your response in any situation – have an amazing day!
Training On Demand – Manage Your Mind: Practical Techniques to Better Handle Stress & Pressure
If you’d like to better manage your stress and pressure over the Christmas period, feel free to check out our 90 minute online course called: “Manage Your Mind: Practical Tips to better manage Stress and Pressure” … a perfect excuse to grab some time over Christmas to yourself to learn and equip yourself for the future! Click the Image below to find out more:
