The holidays mean different things to different people. For some, they are a time of joy and celebration, a time to take a break from the hustle and bustle of daily life, and a time to be with your loved ones. For others, they can be incredibly stressful and triggering when it comes to feelings of anxiety or depression or a history of disordered eating and addiction. Here are some things to keep in mind this holiday season:  

 

Often, we invalidate how we feel about the holidays, forcing ourselves to feel a certain way about them. We try to force feelings of excitement and joy. Your feelings are valid and trying to push them away can, sometimes, make things worse. It is important to acknowledge feelings of anxiety, depression, or loneliness around the holidays.  

 

We can put impossible pressures on ourselves during the holidays to make the most use of our time. In doing so, we pile on too much and can end up feeling burned out at a time when we are meant to rest and recuperate. You do not need to be being the most.  

 

This might be easier said than done but it is so important to put our needs ahead of any obligations we may feel to saying yes to things that make us feel miserable or anxious. Prioritize the activities that make you happy. This is different for everyone.

 

There is no such thing as the perfect holiday, yet we spend so much time worrying about how to make sure we have one. It is time we started abandoning the idea of making things perfect and started embracing the idea that things might not go as planned and that is okay.  

 

In addition to the above, the most important thing to remember this holiday season is to give ourselves permission to seek help if we need it. This can come in the form of delegating tasks to our loved ones rather than taking on everything ourselves. It can also mean accessing resources that are in place to help us get through this holiday season: