Three simple ways to de-stress your holidays

The holiday season is well underway, and most of us are likely feeling the frenzy of party invitations, travel plans, shopping and tying up all the loose ends of 2022.

It's during this time of year when I notice my clients need extra support and encouragement to slow down and make time for themselves. I find myself bringing in more mindfulness practices and restorative yoga to help them learn how to find more peace in their bodies and minds during hectic times.

There can be so much to love about this season, but it can also come with a heavy side of stress.

Think back to this summer. Remember that feeling at the end of a great yoga class or a perfect beach day? Those few magical moments of bliss where everything feels right in the world? If we are lucky, we can make this bliss last for a couple of hours. With a little practice and a few quick tips, we can bring this peace into our holiday season and our daily lives.

You may be familiar with the term, fight or flight. This describes what happens to the nervous system in stressful situations. We may feel our face flush and our heart rate increase, or our mouth may become dry as our adrenaline begins to pump. This is our body preparing to stay and fight or get away as fast as possible from what it perceives as a harmful situation.

This complex system evolved in our bodies to protect us from danger. However, our brain did not evolve the ability to tell the difference between an impending deadline, unexpected heavy holiday traffic, or an actual tiger chasing after us. This means we respond to every stressful situation as if it were a matter of life or death. You can see how this might become problematic during a season filled with many large and small stressors.

Fear not! Below are a few tips and tricks to guide your body and mind back to being present and feeling more Zen:

• Close your eyes and visualize. The mind is a powerful tool. Try closing your eyes and thinking of a time when you felt deeply relaxed. This might be a perfect beach day, a shared memory with a dear friend, or a hobby that you deeply enjoy. Feel it, taste it, smell everything about that blissful moment. Pretty soon you will find yourself letting go a little bit.
• Breathe deeply with intention. Sit or stand where you are with your feet evenly pressing into the earth. Inhale deeply through the nose, trying to make the belly rise and ribs go out wide (like stretching out the band on your sports bra). Exhale with the same deliberate intention, completely emptying the belly. Three deep breaths is enough to trigger your nervous system to relax at a cellular level. It can be helpful to place one hand on your chest and one hand on your belly to deepen your connection to your body during the breathing practice.
• Take a mindful moment. Place one hand on your heart and one hand on your belly. Simply notice the sensations you feel under your hands as you breathe in and out. Really allow yourself to be fully present with sensations like temperature, texture and movement. And once you have done this for about a minute or so, notice how you feel. The mind often feels a little less busy and the body may feel more at ease.

Staying present during a busy season can be challenging. By taking a few moments during the day to practice these mindfulness exercises, and by noting what is happening in our minds and bodies, we can create more moments of awareness. As you slow down and allow this space, you may notice you are able to be more present with friends and loved ones or simply enjoy the details of the season that bring you joy. Bliss can be yours whenever you desire. Give this gift to yourself. You are worth it.