Sanity Savers For The Holidays

Sanity Savers for the Holidays

Sanity Saver#1. Remember What’s Important.
Remind your family members about what the true meaning of the holiday’s are, compassion, generosity of spirit, gratitude and giving. Suggest a gift exchange in which each family member randomly chooses someone for whom they play Santa. Because not everyone in our families is necessarily in the same income bracket out of respect set a reasonable limit on how much to spend. Remember the focus isn’t on what we get, but on being together and cherishing our connections.

Sanity Saver#2. Keep It Simple.
If you’re entertaining think about what are some of the dishes you can get ready-made? A friend of mine who does a lot of entertaining buys frozen quiches and pies and puts then in her own decorative pie plates. When someone says that’s delicious she either says “it’s an old family recipe” or “glad you liked it.” Ask family members to pitch in and contribute either food or participation. It actually can add to the holiday spirit to have your family members involved. If you’re mother is a great baker let her do the deserts, one person can do the decorating, the guys can bring in the firewood or run errands, or cook if that’s their talent.

Sanity Saver#3. Rotate Responsibilities.
Talk about starting to rotate the role of hosting the family party so that it doesn’t always fall to one person. “We really have enjoyed hosting Christmas Eve all these years, but next year we won’t be doing it.” Give People fair warning. Talk about changing things at the time of the current holiday celebration to set up what’s going to happen for the future. Be sure to have the support of your spouse etc.

Sanity Saver#4. Get Real About What You Expect of Yourself and Others.
We tend to go into fantasy at the holidays about becoming the Norman Rockwell family and it isn’t going to happen! Your family is your family and now more than ever is the time to appreciate and accept them. That said, we also have to have realistic expectations of what we can expect of ourselves. We have to admit that we’re a mere mortal with needs of our own and that we can’t make everything perfect. Don’t overextend yourself. When we push ourselves beyond our limits it’s not too long before Cruella De Villa or Godzilla wreaks havoc on our family friends and co-workers. Make your motto, “Good enough,” for the Holiday Season.

Sanity Saver#5. Keep in Mind the True Meaning of the Holidays.
There is the cultural holiday season and the real holidays and we have to find a balance between the two. The culture is all about buying gifts and the real holidays are about love, giving of oneself, acceptance, understanding, compassion and kindness. The true holidays are about connecting with the people you love and letting them know how much they mean to you. It’s about giving to those who are less fortunate than we are, it’s about remembering to be grateful for all that we have and for finding it in our hearts to be understanding and kind to our loved ones.

Sanity Saver#6. Respect Different Faiths and Customs.
Remember that this is a time of year for inclusion and recognize that at heart each and every religion there are fundamental similarities, love, compassion, respect, giving. Participate in honoring the other faith. Join in whatever way, light the menorah together, go to midnight mass, cook a traditional dish. We are attracted to someone because of our similarities, but we grow because of our differences and respect and appreciation of differences is one of the best gifts you can give to one another during this time of year.

Sanity Saver#7. Have a Sense of Humor.
This is another facet of maintaining your sanity during the holidays. Yet, we often forget to laugh. We become so serious that we lose touch with our sense of joy and the celebratory spirit. There maybe a time during the holiday season when nothing seems to go right. We want things to be a certain way and we just can’t make it happen. One of the greatest benefits of having a sense of humor is if you can laugh, you can get through anything.

Happy Holidays!

For information on Stephanie Marston’s services please visit www.stephaniemarston.comn