3 ways to reduce stress this holiday season

On December 23, 2024By Littum

The holidays are typically a time for celebration and joy, but for many people they are also incredibly stressful. And if your anxiety levels rise in December, you’re not alone.

Nearly half, 41% of American adults say their stress increases this time of year, according to American Psychological Association. “I think there’s comfort in knowing you’re not alone in feeling super stressed,” says happiness expert Jessica Weiss.

Weiss has spent more than a decade lecturing and creating workshops on job satisfaction, including a TED talk titled “Happiness: It’s an inside job.” Here are her tips on how to improve your mood this season.

1. Maintain social connections

For Weiss, when you’re feeling stressed, “the most important thing is to maintain social connections,” she says. Specifically, try to “have some micro-moments of connection.”

These can be with family and friends and don’t have to be too long. “I’m talking like 10 minutes,” she says. Ideally, they happen in person, but if they have to be via phone call or text, that’s fine too. Try to have at least two moments of connection a day.

“Even brief moments of positive interaction will increase happiness and reduce stress,” she says.

2. Maintain your routine

Second, no matter what the holiday season brings in terms of a variety of seasonal activities, “maintain your regular routines,” she says.

For Weiss, it’s exercise, but “maybe your regular routine is to read for half an hour in the morning,” she says. “Maybe your regular routine is to do breath work before you start your day. Maybe your regular routine is to relax with a warm bath.”

It’s especially important to keep doing whatever it is you’re doing to de-stress. It “will make everything feel a lot more normal,” she says.

3. Say ‘no’ when you need to

Finally, it’s very easy for schedules to fill up this time of year, but you don’t have to say yes to every invitation. “Say no to anything that drains you,” says Weiss.

“There will be certain things that are essential, right?” she says, maybe family gatherings for example. But, she adds, “the non-essentials are the things you can say no to, and the litmus test is, what’s the worst that could happen if I say ‘no’ to them?”

If you realize that there will be no major consequences, this is your opportunity to say no and get that time back.

Ultimately, Weiss believes that “sometimes less celebration means more joy.”

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