The final months of the year are filled with excitement, joy, activity and a wealth of time with loved ones. It’s easy to get so wrapped up in planning our Thanksgiving menus, making our Christmas lists and managing finals or work that we sometimes forget the stress that comes with the season.
For me, finding ways to keep myself grounded during these stressful times of year can be a challenge and it can feel impractical when I think of all the things I have to look forward to. The truth is, as exciting as they are, big events in our lives can be overwhelming. The stress you may feel with the approaching holiday and finals season is completely normal.
Whether you’re feeling anxious, uptight, excited or anywhere in between, here are five tips to help you stay present and centered during the busy yet joyful end of the year.
#1 Journaling
As cliché as it may sound, the first step to grounding yourself is understanding where your emotions are coming from. Get out a piece of paper and let all those overbearing feelings out.
The National Library of Medicine conducted a 12-week study on 70 adults with various mental conditions. Its conclusion? Journaling did help improve mental well-being and was an effective way to control mental distress.
There is a specific idea associated with journaling — dramatically writing down every last thought and feeling. In reality, journaling can be a much broader recreation. Make a list of things you’re grateful for, write a stream of completely illegible thoughts from the darkest corners of your head or copy down lyrics to a song that made you happy today. Anything that takes the weight off your chest and helps clear your mind is beneficial.
During the holiday season, it can help to have time to simply clear your head and write something that stays just between you and the paper. Journaling can be the organization that your brain needs to slow down and let your thoughts breathe.
#2 Mindful Walks
I know it can seem silly or exaggerated, but there is a benefit to walking with no destination and allowing yourself unstructured time to formulate thoughts. This is a sort of counter to the flooding of ideas that comes with journaling. A mindful walk can be beneficial for one’s imagination, as you take time to ponder on the future and allow your brain to venture in any direction it pleases without being redirected.
Physical activity can also be hugely beneficial for reducing stress and anxiety during stressful times of the year. The American Psychological Association reported an 18% decreased risk of depression for adults who were getting their daily recommended amount of physical activity per week — roughly 75 minutes of walking per week. This may sound like a lot, but taking a 10 to 15-minute walk per day is more than enough.
Mindful walks don’t have to be a silent debate between you and your mind, either. Podcasts, playlists and audiobooks are great ways to take your mind off of the stress of life while experiencing physical activity. Turn on a good fall playlist, that audiobook you’ve been meaning to listen to or the true crime podcast that may or may not have you pondering the true intentions of your neighbors. Reconnecting with your emotions and allowing yourself time to think can come in all shapes and forms. Sometimes, something thought-provoking or relaxing can be just the tool you need to fully embrace a state of mindfulness.
Though the temperature is getting colder, a quick walk and exposure to the fresh air outside of the library can help with brain function. I’m not saying to blow off studying and do a full lap around campus as a foolproof way to ace your exams, but taking a break and breathing in the chilly fall air before returning to your computer can recharge your battery just enough to power through that last hour of studying
#3 Making Lists
I have always been a huge fan of list-making. From the smallest tasks I need to remember before walking out the door to a list of the five things I need to get done by the end of the month, writing it out has always helped me keep track of appointments, assignments and events, making me feel more organized. Some people need to have more specified lists to keep track of the smallest things, and some people can’t handle the pressure of having things perfectly planned out and crave spontaneity.
Whether you live by your planner or hate being tied to a schedule, during the stress of the holidays, making a list of some kind can help you stay on track. Lists don’t have to be just for tasks or assignments, this can entail a list of gifts you want to get for a special someone in your life, a list of things you are grateful for or looking forward to or simply a list of good things that happened to you today.
Psychology Today compiled a list of 10 reasons why making lists is beneficial, showing the positive psychology behind list-making. Making lists can cue your brain to come up with more items while writing out the main ones, allowing you to accomplish more by cueing one item with another.
They also mention how making a list can give you a sense of accomplishment. I think most people would agree that it is extremely satisfying to watch each individual item on a list get crossed off as they are accomplished, giving us a visual affirmation that we are productive and doing well. Even the crossing off of a small task shows that something is getting done, regardless of how overwhelmed we might feel in the face of stressful events.
Finally, sometimes during an overwhelming time, we can feel like we have to take on everything and remember things on our own, leading to the feeling of being overwhelmed. Allowing ourselves to write it out encourages us to take things one step at a time. Even if we still have plane tickets to buy and studying to do, checking off the one assignment we’ve finished gives us the confidence to keep going and the motivation to check off something else, forcing us to take on tasks one at a time.
#4 Making time for fun
Even when things get stressful, it’s important that we remember to prioritize the things that matter. College and life in your 20s is all about a balance between work and play and the ability to understand when you need a break is the truly admirable thing about a student in good academic standing.
Now I’m not saying to blow off the library for a night out, but rather finding a balance. Remember that the people in your life and the things you enjoy are just as much a part of you as the grades in the gradebook.
Making time for fun doesn’t always have to be high intensity. Try going for coffee with a friend and avoid the topic of holidays or academics; talk about the things that make you genuinely happy.
Fun can also be fostering a relationship with yourself. Take the time to watch a comfort movie or practice your favorite method of self-care. When life gets stressful, self-care tends to be the first thing to fall by the wayside — but that is exactly when we need it the most.
#5 Call Home
Whether you’re a college student living far from home for the first time or working your first corporate job in the big city, being away from home is difficult. When the holiday decorations come out at the store and suddenly you hear Christmas tunes on the radio, it’s easy to feel homesick and miss seeing your family every day. Especially when stress continues to build as the end of the year creeps nearer and nearer, grounding yourself in a strange place can feel nearly impossible.
Sometimes, the comfort and familiarity of making a call to someone in your life who feels far away is the motivation you need to get things done. Staying grounded this time of year is obviously important and taking the time to work on the connections and people that are important to you is one way to achieve that grounding and remember why you endure such stress.
Conversations with your mother or your friends from back home can feel strangely like a burden when you are attempting to be independent and build a life for yourself, but it is important to remember that you will come back home again and again, and it’s okay to crave the comfort of the life you used to have.
Take five minutes to make a call and talk about what’s making you anxious, though it may feel silly to speak about your problems with people who may be so far away, sometimes it helps to get stressors off your chest with the people who matter most. A balance of home life and your life is what makes your college journey enjoyable.
Final Thoughts
The end of the year is stressful in countless ways. It’s important to get on top of our stress and ground ourselves before it takes over as things start to pile up. With these five methods, you can remind yourself to stay in the moment and maybe even begin to enjoy the holidays again, eliminating the stress associated with the -ber months and feeling the true magic of the holidays again.