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Matt McTeague

8 Tips for Managing Your Mental Health During the Holidays

Maintaining your mental health throughout the year is important for healthy living. However, the holidays are usually more stressful due to many activities and socializing with family, friends and co-workers. It’s important to pay extra attention to your mental health during these times. Here are some tips to help you maintain mental focus and stability during the holidays:


Plan your holiday

One great way to maintain your mental health is to plan your holiday. Plan the places you want to visit, activities you want to try out, and guests you’ll have over. Making plans for the holiday will make it easier for you to handle things when the need arises and reduce the stress you face.


Pay attention to your needs

The holidays can be very demanding of both your time and resources. As you go about helping others and making the holiday memorable for others, also ensure to consider your needs and do your best to be comfortable.


Don't take on more than you can handle

It's important not to take on only what you can handle. You can create a schedule and only fit the things you can do into it, and don’t overwhelm yourself.


Ask for and accept help

Sometimes, the real stress comes from trying to do everything by yourself. It’s okay to ask for help when you need it and also to accept it when it's offered. This way, you have less on your hands, and it's less stressful for you.


Set boundaries

Having guests and family over for the holidays can be challenging but setting boundaries for what can and cannot be done is a great way to preserve your sanity and peace of mind while having many people in your space. Also, learn to say no to the things you don’t want.


Get enough rest and sleep

As you go about all the festivities and activities, ensure you get enough rest. Sleep at least 8 hours every day to get your body rested and energized for all your planned activities.


Don't abandon healthy habits

During the holidays, the festive cheer is often a lure to unhealthy habits. Overindulgence in food and excessive consumption of alcohol can result in complications later on. You should never allow the holidays to be an excuse for free-for-all indulgences.


Instead, you can stick to healthy meals, avoid excessive tobacco and drug use, and get sufficient sleep. You can also make a habit of eating healthy snacks before eating holiday meals to ensure that you don't eat too many sweets.


Talk to someone

If you feel overwhelmed with everything around you and can’t seem to shake it off, talk to someone about it. You can visit a professional therapist like me to help you through those feelings. Feel free to reach out to me to book a session.



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