Why an article about Christmas stress now? Well often we get so caught up in the drama that is Christmas that we are overloaded before we realise it.While a certain amount of stress is inevitable there is a lot we can do. The following list contains some suggestions that have worked for the women who work at Women's Health Information Centre:
- Some of you will be facing Xmas alone. If this is you it is important to plan ahead so that you can make christmas as enjoyable as possible. Many people who are alone find they really enjoy volunteering over this time e.g. helping to provide lunch at the local City Mission. If you think you would like to volunteer, now is the time to investigate what possibilites are available. You may also want to get in some special treats for yourself to make the Xmas period easier e.g. face and hand treatments or other nurturing things.
- Make a list of all the people you need to buy for. This list is most useful when it also specifies a dollar amount for each person and an idea about what to buy them.
- If you don't belong to Chrisco's or another sort of Xmas club start putting away a set amount per week towards buying Xmas food.
- Come up with a plan now about how you will deal with any of those tricky family situations that often come up at Xmas.
- Put in place a regular exercise programme and make sure you eat well in the lead up to Xmas. The healthier you are the better you will cope once Xmas arrives. It will also help to reduce that weight gain many of us experience over Xmas.
By Cindy Carmicheal - Centre Coordinator - Women's Health Information Centre
