The gift of health and wellbeing

Tips to make the holidays more manageable

During the holiday season, you may feel a little tired and stressed. It’s important to be present during these times and focus on your health and wellbeing. The holidays can be stressful, but by helping yourself find calm, the holidays can be worry free.

How to find calm

Here a few tips from the Mayo Clinic that may help prevent stress and depression so you can relax this season:

Acknowledge your feelings

If you can’t be with loved ones, know it’s normal to feel sadness.

Reach out

If you feel lonely or isolated, connect with friends and family.

Stick to a budget

Decide before shopping how much to spend on gifts and food to help prevent money-related stress.

Plan ahead

Set aside specific days for shopping, baking, visiting friends and other activities.

Learn to say no

Friends will understand if you can’t participate in every project or activity.

Don’t abandon healthy habits

Everyone loves a holiday treat, but overdoing it only adds to your stress and guilt. Eat healthy and still make time for a little exercise.

Take a breather

Make some time for yourself to do some stress-relieving activities, like yoga or journaling.

Rest your mind

Get at least seven hours of sleep each night.

Take it easy

By making time to take care of yourself, you’ll help make the holidays a lot more enjoyable. Pay attention to your mental health so that you can avoid triggers that may overwhelm you. If depression persists, talk to a mental health professional. Mental health concerns should be addressed right away and with care.

Need help finding a mental health provider?

To find a mental health provider, log into your member account at members.bcidaho.com and select Find a Provider from the right-side menu on the home page. You can narrow your search by filtering providers by characteristics and the type of behavioral healthcare they specialize in, such as depression or anxiety. We also have some tips that may help you find a mental health provider that is right for you.

Publish date: December 22, 2021