The holidays tend to be a very busy time of year. Even if you have time off from work, you might find yourself with a packed schedule! This is especially true if you’ll be hosting family gatherings at your home or traveling far away to see loved ones.
Some days, you might feel you’re running around from sun up to sun own. And even if you desperately want a break, it can be so hard to turn down invitations to family events—after all, you don’t want to disappoint anyone.
But this holiday season, it’s important to make time for yourself. You don’t need to fill your schedule with events every single day. Here’s why taking breaks during the holidays and finding moments to pause is so crucial.
Feel Refreshed
When you’re focused on an important project at work, you probably know that taking occasional breaks can be beneficial. This is true when your personal life gets busy, too!
Of course, when you are planning holiday festivities, it can feel harder to step away, especially if your family is depending on you. But no matter what your obligations are, you need time to pause and just be. Doing so will help you feel more refreshed when you need to get back to planning, shopping, cooking, and decorating.
Take a Break from Socializing
During the holiday season, you get the chance to reconnect with loved ones who you don’t see very often. But even if you truly enjoy spending time with your loved ones, constant socializing can become overwhelming.
This is often an issue for introverts around this time of year. When you have time to pause, you can recollect yourself, and soon, you’ll be looking forward to getting together with your loved ones again!
Find Joy in Busy Times
If you’re so busy that the holidays no longer feel fun, having more time to relax can help you improve your mood. When you have so many commitments, it can seem like the holidays aren’t the joyful times that they should be.
You might even find yourself missing the holidays of your childhood when you didn’t have so many responsibilities. But by creating a little more room in your schedule, you can rekindle the same joy you felt as a child.
Let Go of Perfectionism
There is so much pressure to have the “perfect” holiday season. This can feel even more pronounced because of social media. If you notice that someone else is attending more events, or their home is done up with fancier decorations, you might feel you’re not taking the “right” approach to the holidays.
If a holiday recipe doesn’t taste good, or you feel like a gathering you hosted wasn’t as much fun as you wanted it to be, it’s easy to get discouraged. But when you have peaceful moments alone, you can allow yourself to let go of perfectionism. You can remind yourself of what matters most rather than stressing about small details.
Remember the Reason for the Season
In the midst of holiday chaos, it’s easy to forget what the holidays are all about. No matter what you celebrate or which traditions you practice, the holidays have always been a time to focus on what’s most important in life: family, love, and happiness. Today, the holidays can feel commercialized and stressful. But these moments to pause can help you shift your focus to the true meaning behind the holidays.
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Are you struggling to get a moment to yourself this holiday season? Therapy can help you find relief. Reach out to me today to discuss your options for scheduling your first session.