{"id":1089,"date":"2024-12-16T19:46:58","date_gmt":"2024-12-16T19:46:58","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.mopip.org\/blog\/?p=1089"},"modified":"2025-08-05T14:49:03","modified_gmt":"2025-08-05T14:49:03","slug":"managing-anxiety-during-the-holidays-2","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.mopip.org\/blog\/2024\/12\/16\/managing-anxiety-during-the-holidays-2\/","title":{"rendered":"Managing Anxiety During the Holidays"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p>A couple of years ago, Academy-award-winning actress and philanthropist Viola Davis shared\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/p\/Cl1apw2OEBZ\/?hl=en\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">an image by @haleydrewthis on Instagram<\/a>. In the image, an anthropomorphized scribble with legs, arms, and wide eyes is labeled \u201cmy anxiety.\u201d In the adjacent picture, it is the same scribble but with Christmas lights, labeled \u201cmy anxiety in December.\u201d The picture is adorable but, also, very accurate. Just because it\u2019s the holidays doesn\u2019t mean our mental health difficulties go away. In fact, for many, they can get worse. For those suffering from anxiety during the holidays, here are some tips that may help you or someone you know.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><a><\/a>5 Tips to Help Manage Anxiety During the Holidays<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<ul>\n<li><strong>It\u2019s Different, but It\u2019s Also Not:<\/strong>\u00a0The holidays sometimes feel like they should be \u201cextra\u201d in every way. And while in some respects that can be true, whatever you have been doing to manage your anxiety you should keep doing. It may be that your regular coping mechanisms are enough and there isn\u2019t anything \u201cmore\u201d needed to feel safe and comfortable during this time. It may not be as complicated as it appears to be.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Shorten Your Commitments:<\/strong>\u00a0Sometimes we can feel pressure to be \u201cfully committed\u201d to holiday events. If it\u2019s gathering with extended relatives, stay the whole time. Shopping, at the same time everyone else is going. Dinner, standing in line just because everyone else is. If things feel overwhelming, it\u2019s okay to consider an alternative approach. Maybe don\u2019t stay as long, wait until things are less crowded, or delay getting in line for food until things settle down.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"580\" src=\"https:\/\/www.mopip.org\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/12\/dinner-7585935_1280-1024x580.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-1092\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.mopip.org\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/12\/dinner-7585935_1280-1024x580.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/www.mopip.org\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/12\/dinner-7585935_1280-300x170.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.mopip.org\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/12\/dinner-7585935_1280-768x435.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.mopip.org\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/12\/dinner-7585935_1280-1200x680.jpg 1200w, https:\/\/www.mopip.org\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/12\/dinner-7585935_1280.jpg 1280w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Be (Selectively) Vulnerable:<\/strong>\u00a0Now, that may sound like anxiety-provoking advice but, sharing your concerns around anxiety with a supportive person(s) can be stabilizing and helpful. Find someone who is safe to share with so it is not you alone who is aware of anxious feelings. If this person is with you during the holidays they can be a regulating person to check in with.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Lower Your Expectations:<\/strong>\u00a0A great source of anxiety during the holidays is the\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/annerulo.com\/2020\/11\/30\/happiness-hack-breaking-up-with-the-moment-fairy\/\">expectation around \u201cmoments\u201d<\/a>, traditions, and detailed or orchestrated events. As much as it is under your control, commit to taking the holidays \u201cas they come\u201d rather than in a predesigned outcome that feels like it \u201cmust\u201d happen. Be willing to laugh at those things that don\u2019t go as planned and commit to making memories of whatever comes.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Remember, Feelings Aren\u2019t Facts:<\/strong>\u00a0While this is true all year long, sometimes we can lose our center a bit during the holidays. Remember to ground yourself in the moment, remind yourself that you are safe, breathe slowly to reconnect with your body, and give yourself plenty of time to transition between events. Be extra committed to your downtime so that you can communicate to your body\u2019s anxiety that it is not under threat.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>Anxiety can be a difficult thing to manage during the holidays but, with a little planning, forethought, and intentionality, we can mitigate at least some of the struggle. Wishing you a most peaceful holiday.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><em>Originally published December 19, 2022. Updated on December 16, 2024. By Anne Rulo, Author, Speaker, Therapist. www.annerulo.com. FB\/IG\/Twitter @annemrulo\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>A couple of years ago, Academy-award-winning actress and philanthropist Viola Davis shared\u00a0an image by @haleydrewthis on Instagram. In the image, an anthropomorphized scribble with legs, arms, and wide eyes is labeled \u201cmy anxiety.\u201d In the adjacent picture, it is the same scribble but with Christmas lights, labeled \u201cmy anxiety in December.\u201d The picture is adorable [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":1090,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[101],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.mopip.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1089"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.mopip.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.mopip.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.mopip.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.mopip.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1089"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/www.mopip.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1089\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1093,"href":"https:\/\/www.mopip.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1089\/revisions\/1093"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.mopip.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1090"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.mopip.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1089"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.mopip.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1089"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.mopip.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1089"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}