Stay Merry, Not Weary: Tips for Managing Stress During the Busy Holiday Season

Christmas is most certainly a wonderful time of year, but also very busy. The extra time we spend preparing, enjoying time with family, and going to Christmas events provides us with less time to sleep and relax, which can increase stress levels. Use the tips in this post to help you have a healthy, safe, and enjoyable Christmas.

Stress is a common topic, but the explanation of what is going on in the body to cause it is not. It is a response of the sympathetic nervous system often referred to as the "fight or flight response". This releases adrenaline hormones and the "stress hormone" cortisol. When life demands more, we tend to function in this mode too long, and cortisol levels become too high. This is known as being "stressed out". It is detrimental to our health, causes us to be irritable, and often times leads to poor decision making.

People tend to combat stress in unhealthy ways. Here you will find three healthy ways to put your excess stress to rest. I refer to this first method as a stress hack. It is simple, yet not well known. It is a vital mineral and most of us have a deficiency. There are three hundred different reasons magnesium is good for you and one of these is that it minimizes the buildup of cortisol (stress) levels in the body. You can find a good amount in a variety of nuts, leafy greens, and whole grains. While food would be the best source, an additional option is to supplement it. It is recommended to be taken in the evening because it can make you a little sleepy, and as far as stress is concerned that is a good thing.

Good sleep makes everything better and magnesium can make for good sleep. It is always good to establish a suitable time to go to bed in accordance with your wakeup time. This is especially true for those working on a rotating shift work schedule, such as a Du Pont variation, which is commonly used in control room environments. Sleep will mitigate your stress and sleep deprived employees are 70 percent more likely to be involved in workplace accidents.

Another way to reduce stress and to improve sleep is deep breathing. There are many methods, but this popular and effective method is referred to as the 4-7-8 method. What is the 4-7-8 method? Inhale through your nose for 4 seconds, hold your breath for 7, and exhale out of your mouth for 8 seconds. Repeat this 3 times. As you can see all of these collaborate with one another. If you put all three into practice you will decrease your stress, promote your alertness, and improve your overall wellbeing. In return, this ensures that you remain fit for duty, even in the busiest of seasons. Merry Christmas to all!