For some, the holidays bring good will and happy times spent with family. There is the joy of decorating and reconnecting with loved ones away from the usual structure of work or school life. For others, holidays are the culmination of everyday stress with the addition of planning holiday dinners and parties, managing holiday spending, and spending time with family, which can sometimes come with complicated relationships or even recent or not so recent losses. It is no wonder that many struggle with anxiety during the holiday season.
Do you find that anxiety or even seasonal depression starts to rear its ugly head sometime in late October to mid-November?
If you do, you are not alone!
Between late November and the New Year, we enter the season, which includes Thanksgiving, Hanukkah, Christmas, Kwanzaa, Winter Solstice, and New Year’s Eve to name a few.
Anxiety is one of the most frequently diagnosed mental health concerns for people throughout the world.
If you already struggle with anxiety, the holidays can often add to your everyday triggers for anxiety, leaving you feeling overwhelmed and depleted. The holiday season often brings memories of special people who are no longer with us or past traumas. It is for this reason; we will want to take extra special care of ourselves during this time of year.
If you already struggle with anxiety, the holidays can often add to your everyday triggers for anxiety, leaving you feeling overwhelmed and depleted. The holiday season often brings memories of special people who are no longer with us or past traumas. It is for this reason; we will want to take extra special care of ourselves during this time of year.
Anxiety can be felt in our body in many ways. Some people experience headaches, dizziness stomachaches, nausea, increased heart rate (pounding in the chest), pressure/pain in the chest, crying spells, shutting down, zoning out, feeling more lethargic, and difficulty concentrating to name a few. When you notice your body feeling like things are spinning out of control, it is important to remember that your nervous system is responding to those anxiety triggers in three possible ways:
fight
flight
freeze
If the holidays are leaving you feeling panicked, worried, stressed, and physically uncomfortable in your body, you may be experiencing an activation of your nervous system called hyperarousal or fight/flight.
Below is a list of things you can do to help you when you feel this way:
- Name it-identify what is making you feel anxious
- Bake or cook
- Dim the lights
- Take a screen break for 60 minutes or more
- Take slow, deep breaths for counts of four, in through the nose for four seconds, pause for four seconds, and loud exhales for four seconds. Take a normal resting breath in between the long breaths. Do that for a cycle of four. If you need more, do another cycle of four
- Listen to calm, mellow music
- Try some gentle yoga, (all available via google search, if needed), such as child’s pose, forward fold, or legs at the wall. Pair your breath work with the yoga for best results
- Play with a fidget toy or stress ball
- Use a weighted blanket
- Splash cold water on your face or take a cold shower
- Talk to a safe person
- Enjoy cooling scents such as lavender or vanilla
- Close your eyes and be still
- Pray or meditate
If you find you are in shutdown mode, which is “freeze” in terms of your nervous system, you might feel like you are zoned out, lethargic, or having some seasonal depression the following coping strategies may help:
- Name it-Identify you are in shutdown or freeze mode
- Use citrus, peppermint, or a scent you have an emotional connection to
- Take a walk, dance, or find a way to increase your heart rate
- Turn the lights on
- Eat some food
- Listen to some powerful or uplifting music
- Identify sensations in your body
- Press your feet into the ground
- Tap into a passion
- Gargle
- Dance, shake your body, jump
- Tap your chest, legs, arms, and face
- Use your senses with grounding (Breathe into your chest, your arms, your hands, your legs, your feet)
- Reach out to a loved one
If you notice that your anxiety and possibly, depression are not responding to the coping skills listed above, please take the time to share with a trusted therapist or your physician for additional help, exploration of additional coping skills, and if needed, medical support.
Wishing you wellness from Central Counseling as we move into this holiday season!
~Colleen Duggin, LCSW
