Holidays

Why It Is Ok To Say “No” This Holiday Season

Published on: December 18, 2019

I saw a social media post the other day that said, “It’s almost time to switch from my everyday anxiety to my fancy Christmas anxiety.” This time of the year evokes a lot of different emotions, and if you are already an anxiety-prone person it can make things that much more difficult. But, no matter who you are, I think we can all agree that the holidays are stressful. To make things less stressful this year, consider saying “no.” Embrace the fact that you are in charge of your own life. Set boundaries with your friends and family. YOU are… Continue Reading This Article

Surviving the Holidays Post-Divorce

Published on: December 3, 2019

You have just gone through an emotional rollercoaster as you and your partner finalized your divorce. Now, it is the holidays, the season of togetherness. What are you supposed to do? Your family no longer looks the way it used to. If you have kids they are likely struggling with a lot of different emotions as well. Survival is at the top of your to-do list. Before we get into how you can get through the holidays in one piece, let’s start with giving yourself some grace. You might be feeling pretty crappy right now, and if you aren’t —… Continue Reading This Article

How Practicing Gratitude Can Help You Be Happier

Published on: November 20, 2019

We know of Thanksgiving as the holiday of shoveling mounds of turkey, stuffing, and pie into our mouths but it is also about being thankful. Gratitude is a practice that can do wonders for your mood, your outlook on life and your overall happiness when embraced year-round. There is always something in your life to be thankful for, you just have to identify it. Shifting Your Focus To Joy So much of the time we focus on the bad things going on. We fall into the realm of feeling like a victim even if the bad only took up a small… Continue Reading This Article

Tips to Avoid the Holiday Blues

Published on: December 14, 2017

The holidays are upon us. Chances are you are knee deep in wrapping paper, lists, bills, cards, party invitations…and sugar. Your head is spinning from all the things you have to get done – get done NOW, and get done well. Let’s stop for a minute. Look around. Take a deep breath. Put things into perspective. The holidays are not all about the goodies, or the gifts. It is about being together, and doing good for others. Maintain Perspective It is also the time of the year when depression is on the rise — people are missing loved ones, or… Continue Reading This Article

Don’t Let the Food Win: Tips to kick emotional eating during the holidays

Published on: November 12, 2017

The holiday season can be great—it can be full of happy moments, celebrating, love, and cherished family time. But, it can also bring rise to unpleasant feelings of loss, regret, depression, or being overwhelmed. If you are an emotional eater the holiday season can be a big trigger especially with the abundance of savory and sweet options. Emotional eaters turn to food to numb their feelings—and many times without even realizing it they find themselves mindlessly nibbling during moments of stress. The problem tends to be exaggerated during this season when food is plentiful, and options might be different from… Continue Reading This Article

This Year, Make a New Year’s Mantra Instead of a Resolution

Published on: January 2, 2017

It is a New Year and time to make some positive life changes, or as we call them – New Year’s resolutions. This year we urge you to take a different approach to the resolution. Rather than strive for a physical goal put your brain to work by coming up with a New Year’s mantra. A mantra, if you are unfamiliar with the term, comes from “man” meaning mind and “tra” meaning “instrument” – a mantra is an “instrument of the mind.” (Source: Huffington Post) It is a personal slogan or motto that is said repeatedly. By changing the way… Continue Reading This Article

How To Manage Holiday Stress Through Mindfulness

Published on: December 15, 2016

We all know that the holidays can be a stressful time since there are a seemingly endless amount of tasks and responsibilities. To start–shopping for presents, wrapping presents, cleaning, decorating, shopping for groceries, cooking large meals, attending holiday parties, and arranging schedules to visit with family are just some of the responsibilities required of us. That’s an incredible amount of tasks to complete in less than a month’s time! How Do You Manage Holiday Stress? It’s not hard to see how easily we can become overwhelmed with such a daunting list, but what if we stepped aside and took an… Continue Reading This Article

Don’t Let the Holidays Get You Down

Published on: December 5, 2016

The cookies. The decorating. The shopping. The parties. The cards. And all the wrapping! It sounds so fun at first then the stress kicks in. It doesn’t take long for that to-do list to get overwhelming. Remind Yourself of What the Holidays are Really About But, the truth is you don’t have to do it all. Cut yourself some slack and remember what the holiday season is really about – spending time with family; focusing on the good in life. That meaning can get lost in all the hustle and bustle and lead to one stressed out, miserable person. Nine… Continue Reading This Article