The holidays can be a joy-filled season, but they can also be stressful and especially challenging for those impacted by mental illness. For individuals and families coping with mental health challenges, the holiday season can be a lonely or stressful time, filled with anxiety and/or depression. If you’re living with a mental health condition, stress can also contribute to worsening symptoms. Reporter Hilary Sloane has some suggestions for how you can reduce stress and maintain good mental health during the holiday season…
Accept your needs, be kind to yourself and put your own mental and physical well-being first. Write a gratitude list and offer thanks and manage your time while trying not to do too much. Be realistic, even pre-pandemic, the happy lives of the people shown in those holiday commercials are fictional. Set boundaries, family dynamics can be complex. Acknowledge them and accept that you can only control your role. If you need to, find ways to limit your exposure. Deep breathing, meditation and progressive muscle relaxation are good ways to calm yourself.
Exercise daily, it naturally produces stress-relieving hormones in your body and improves your overall physical health. Set aside time for yourself and prioritize self-care. Eat well, as eating unprocessed foods, like whole grains, vegetables, and fresh fruit is the foundation for a healthy body and mind. Eating well can also help stabilize your mood. Get enough sleep since symptoms of some mental health conditions, like mania in bipolar disorder, can be triggered by getting too little sleep. Avoid alcohol and drugs. They don’t actually reduce stress: in fact, they often worsen it
Finally, find support. Whether it’s with friends, family, a counselor or a support group, airing out and talking can help. If you or someone you love is experiencing a crisis, you can call the National Suicide Prevention Line at 1-800-273-8255.
