Mindfulness for the Holidays

There is so much to get excited for at the end of the year. Good food, time with family, gifts, and long chats around a dinner table or by a fireplace are constants for most families in November and December. But that doesn’t mean we don’t get a little catch in our chest every now and then. Suddenly, joy and light is something we’d rather avoid, even when we want to engage with it more than anything.

Why Holiday Mindfulness is Important

There are plenty of things that make the holidays difficult for people. From family drama to Seasonal Affective Disorder and plenty more things in between, even that burst of excitement you get when you think about a chanukiah in the window or the multicolor lights on your mom’s tree can go from something you love to something you dread. It can be frustrating. Whether it’s family struggles you’d rather not have shouted over the brisket this year, or it’s simply hard to get out of bed when the world is so cold and dark, you’re not alone. Over 10 million Americans are estimated to struggle with Seasonal Affective Disorder, 80% consider their families to be some level of dysfunctional, and let’s be honest – all of us are over the commercialization that goes in to most winter holidays.

And yet, these holidays are some of the only ones that bring families together year after year. It’s important to protect your own mental health and stability so you can enter that space of family and celebration without a looming cloud over your head. And that is where we get in to holiday mindfulness.

What is Mindfulness?

Mindfulness, in general, is the simple practice of being present. Through various practices like meditation, tech-free nature walks, or simply naming five things in your surroundings, we can start to ground ourselves more in reality and decrease our stress levels.

In an age of technology and a constant news stream, it’s harder than ever to engage with the present, and this can make all of life difficult. Yet, a lot of people tend to struggle around the holidays. Holiday mindfulness isn’t too different from regular practices, it’s just catered towards a time that’s darker and busier than most. From the chaos and busy air that precedes and often dominates such festivities, it’s often a time of constant attention and awareness. And while mindfulness isn’t meant to detach you from that awareness, it is meant to help you control what gets that attention, when, and how much of it.

Holiday Mindfulness Techniques

There are quite a few ways to care for yourself this holiday season. I’ve broken down some of my best tips and tricks into three sections: Home-Based, Techniques on the Go, and SOS Mindfulness. This way you aren’t focusing on one thing. Instead, you’re getting building blocks to support your mental health during the holidays and winter months in all areas. This will not only help you survive the holidays better, but also prepare you to go into them with more positivity and preparedness than before. Holiday mindfulness doesn’t manifest just as meditation – it’s a method of preparing ourselves and our space for a shift.

Home-Based Holiday Mindfulness

First are a few things you can do around your home. There’s the saying that the home is a mirror for the mind – if it’s cluttered, your mind is cluttered. If it’s in need of a clean, it’s likely you’ve got a lot going on up there that you’ve not been addressing. Whether this is a true one-to-one or not, I have found that the state of a home affects the state of the mind. Preparing your space for a time where you’re likely inside more than the rest of the year will not only help you unwind and relax more when you need it, but it will help foster a place where that relaxation is renewing and refreshing.

1. Invest in floor lighting. Bright overhead lights, while making it easier to see during the darker days, can throw off your body’s cortisol levels. Consider relying on warm lights, lamps, and even occasional red or orange bulbs for a calmer space.
2. Put away things for the summer. In general, switch out things you won’t need! Streamline your closet, your decor, and anything else with winter in mind. The less that can cause clutter, the less you’ll be lost in the frustration of your space.
3. Do a deeper clean than usual. Prepare your space for a time when you’re home more often than not. Wipe baseboards, vacuum under the sofa, and so forth. Get rid of the dust of summer and fall, and give yourself a clean space to come home to and relax in.
4. Find occupation in non-technology based hobbies. Pick up that book you’ve been meaning to finish and read that until you get tired, instead of doomscrolling. Try your hand at knitting, or even just sketching. If you’re looking for new hobbies to try this winter, take a look at last year’s two posts about Hibernation Hobbies.

Mindfulness Techniques to Bring With You

Adjusting our space is one thing, but having things on hand while out and about is important too. Whether you’re feeling disconnected or overwhelmed, these are techniques and practices to help you settle back in your body and into the moment.

1. The Body Scan. Good for an overwhelmed or disconnected body. Find a place where you can sit with little to no interruption. Take three deep, slow breaths, and on the last close your eyes. Bring your attention to the top of your head, and slowly scan down your body. Look for places that feel tense, uncomfortable, disconnected, and acknowledge that. You don’t need to find and fix the cause, you just need to acknowledge the sensation and let it relax. Go until you hit your toes, and slowly open your eyes.
2. Visualization. Good for a racing mind. Close your eyes and imagine you’re walking through a forest. Suddenly, you come upon a stream. Maybe there are animals around, maybe there aren’t. Maybe it’s fall, winter, spring, the dead of summer. Observe this internal expanse of nature, and let yourself sit next to the stream. As you’re there, let your mind wander – don’t stop thoughts, but as they come, simply take them and put them on the water, watching them float by. Don’t indulge them, don’t hold them too long. Let them pass by calmly. Do this as long as you need until your mind slows and the stream holds one thought at a time. If the stream is too much to focus on, imagine you’re watching the clouds go by, and each thought is a cloud forming, drifting, and dissipating.

SOS Holiday Mindfulness

What about those times when you’re at a party, stuck in traffic, or at the airport, and suddenly everything just becomes too overwhelming? Maybe the heaviness of the dark days sinks in, maybe stress suddenly multiplies and tries to crush you. There are ways to help calm and connect to yourself so you can take the next steps.

1. Box Breathing. Breathe in for a four count, hold for a four count, and exhale slowly for an eight count. It can be helpful to draw a small square on your knee, the table, or the back of your hand – one side for each second.
2. Sensory Searches. Find five things that you can see, four things you can hear, three things you can smell, two things you can touch, and one thing you can taste.
3. Enjoy a warm drink. While not a very complex thing to do, it is handy. Holding something warm – like a mug – helps regulate our nervous system. Drinking something warm, and doing so slowly, helps even moreso,

Hopefully these tips help you prepare for the holidays and keep them bright and joyful! For further tips on holiday and general winter mindfulness, I recommend checking out Bad Art Every Day on Instagram. If you’re looking to get into meditation, check out the Headspace app. Have the best holiday season, and we’ll see you next time!