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The gift of self-care this Christmas
For some the Christmas season is a time for being with family and for celebrating, however for others it can be an overwhelming time, you may find you want or indeed need to give yourself the gift of self-care. With lots of images of ‘the perfect family’ and ‘abundance’ it’s easy to imagine how overwhelming this could become. It may be a time of remembering those who are no longer with you, and for others a time of great stress and anguish as you attempt to meet the demands and expectations of those around you
So throughout the hustle and bustle of this Christmas period give yourself the gift of self-care. These do not have to be big and overt actions, instead think small… Very often it is the smallest of actions that can cultivate a bigger impact. Here are just a few ideas you could try;
Finding a short period of time to sit quietly. Self-care can be as simple as taking a few minutes to stop, sit, and breathe. Whether we’re able to find a free 3 minutes or 30 minutes to take a break, it can make a world of difference for our well-being. This isn’t about sitting and meditating but simply sitting and reflecting if nothing else but to allow our bodies and our minds to decompress and unwind.
Care for the body is an equally important part of the equation. Having good sleep hygiene, a 10 minute yoga practice in your own home, going for a 20 minute walk and drinking plenty of water can help offset the indulging associated with the Christmas holidays.
Make room for all types of feelings. It’s common for this time of year to bring up feelings of sadness, stress, anxiety, grief, loneliness and overwhelm. Making space for all of your emotions is essential., not only for this season but throughout the year. Should these emotions arise, we might choose to sit with them as an act of self-care and as a way of truly and authentically acknowledging ourselves.
Practice the art of letting go of expectations. This may be the biggest act of holiday self-care we can give ourselves which is to work on letting go of the standards and expectations we so often set for ourselves (and others) at this time of year. When we sit with the mind, we are sitting with the present moment, we are sitting with life as it unfolds, without guarantee and in doing so training the mind to be okay with uncertainty and letting go of any ideals or expectations that can often serve only to ‘trip us up’.
Give the gift of time and self-care to another person. The Christmas Holidays can hold lots of financial expectations and desires to give the latest ‘new thing’ to loved ones. Perhaps this year consider giving the gift of time and self-care to loved ones. This might by a voucher towards a massage, a pre-paid Yoga class or an offer to walk your friends’ children to school for a week. People have busy lives and just a small amount of carving out time for those around you who are also stressed and overwhelmed might be the thing they need more of rather than another Christmas gift that will get lost in the back of a cupboard.
If you are looking for some space and time to care for yourself and or others please check out the dates and times for Yoga over this festive period – Wednesday 18th December at Stratton Village Hall 8-9pm, Thursday 19th December at Daglingworth Village Hall 6.15-7.30pm (this will be a 75 minute session of Yoga Nidra) and Monday 30th December at Preston Village Hall 10.15-11.15am for 60 minutes of restorative stretching, breathing and resting. These sessions are £10 per person and space is limited so if you would like to book a space on either one of these sessions please contact me directly
