Even though the end of the calendar year, is often times marketed as the “most wonderful time of the year,” the truth is that, for many, this can actually be the most difficult time of the year. The National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) found that 64% of people with mental illness say the holidays make their conditions worse. A 2021 survey showed that 3 in 5 Americans feel their mental health is negatively impacted by the holidays.
Here are a few tips to prioritize your mental health during this hectic season:
- Accept Your Feelings - The holidays can bring up a vast range of emotions, including seemingly contradictory emotions all at once. Try your best to acknowledge and accept your emotions rather than place judgment on them. It’s OK to feel happy; it’s OK to feel sad; it’s even OK to feel both happy and sad. Give yourself compassion and allow yourself to sit with whatever you’re feeling.
- Maintain Healthy Habits - Holidays can lead to a massive disruption in your day-to-day routine. Maintaining healthy habits like going to therapy, getting enough sleep and exercising are critical to keeping your mental health on track.
- Set Boundaries - People like to be generous during the holidays, but that generosity doesn’t have to come at the expense of having healthy boundaries. If hosting an event or buying an expensive gift is too stressful, it’s OK to say no. It’s also OK to limit the time you spend with family and friends.
- Make Time To Connect - Connection and meaning are critical to our mental health. Make time for your important relationships and connect with yourself through self-care.
This holiday season — whether you find it to be the most wonderful or most difficult time of the year — MyAdvisor hopes you’ll join us in taking care of your mental health by accepting whatever emotions come up, maintaining healthy habits, setting boundaries on stressors and making time for meaningful connection.
