Who doesn’t love the holidays? Whether you’re religious or not, the spirit of the holiday season is impossible to escape and is usually a positive influence on our hectic, over-stressed, under-celebrated lives. Usually. I’ve found that as I get older, the holidays have started to come with a bit more stress than they did when I was nine. Whether it’s because I’ve come to understand the calorie count of Thanksgiving dinner or because Santa Claus has lost his charm, for the last couple of years I’ve needed a proactive plan of attack to get through the season. Here are my fail-proof steps to staying sane during the not-so-sane holiday season.
1.Get ahead of Holiday weight gain BEFORE it happens: This means not ordering extra whip on that Starbucks Holiday cup just because it’s cold outside and you could use an extra boost. It also means pacing yourself during Thanksgiving dinner. Resist the urge to reach for that extra slice of pie or to put a little more gravy on the mashed potatoes. You’ll feel better about yourself if you do. But the race is not over once Thanksgiving is behind us. Decemeber comes with plenty of hot chocolate, eggnog and holiday treats to tempt us off our diets. In no way am I saying to obstain. Half the joy of the holidays is getting tipsy off eggnog with your great uncle and stuffing your face with treats next to the Christmas tree or menorah. I’m just saying take it slow. Once New Year’s Eve comes rolling around, you’re going to want to fit into that sparkly dress and that’s not going to happen if you overindulge too much.
2.Don’t try to get all your gift shopping done in one day: Planning is imperative to gift buying. There is no way that you are going to be able to wow everyone on your list if you leave your shopping until the last minute. I must admit, this is one of my worst holiday habits. I’m always stuck in the mall on Christmas Eve searching through already combed-over shelves for products that sold out weeks ago. The Internet is a wonderful tool, use it–you don’t even have to get out of your footie-pajamas to do your shopping. Think of one fabulous thing for each person on your list (preferably something thoughtful but cheap … we are college students after all) and get those gifts early. That way you can wrap them, stick them in the closet and enjoy the season without having to stress about holiday shopping.
3.Try not to kill your relatives: Let’s be honest, we all love our relatives but the holidays are always much more difficult when they are around. Things are just uncomfortable when your maternal grandmother and your paternal cousin are sitting in your living room playing Jenga for hours. Nevertheless, you do not have the right to flip out and run screaming from the room. Family is family and we have to put up with them, no matter how hard it may be. The holidays are a time for family, so really do your best to try to remember why you love them.
4.Don’t micromanage: Control freak is one of the many personality traits I personally struggle with during the holidays. Take it from me, there is no use trying to micromanage every detail of two months. You’ll end up stressing yourself out and having an absolutely terrible holiday season. So, rather than trying to get everyone on the same schedule to put up the lights, light the candles, take a family picture or sit down for dinner, go with the flow. You’ll end up having a much better time. I’ve found that eggnog really helps with this one.
5.Enjoy the beauty of the season: Sometimes the only thing we need to return to sanity is to surround ourselves with something beautiful. Thankfully, the holiday season is a time of immense beauty. If you live in the city year round, go down to Rockefeller Center to see the tree and do some ice-skating. If not, bundle up and go outside. Whether it’s the beginning of the season and all the trees are covered in magnificent colors or it’s the end of the season and a layer of glistening snow covers everything, the world is beautiful during the holidays. Go out and enjoy it!