14 DAY TRIAL // Being jolly over the winter holidays is desired, but doctors say that we should play the moderation card in terms of our expectations for Christmas to avoid crashing. In other words, recent warnings issued by several groups say that we should not set too high expectations for this holiday season to avoid heartbreak, and stressful and potentially conflicting situations.
Since Christmas is all about being with our loved ones, it’s only understandable that we all want to make it as memorable as possible. However, this could turn into the very cause for our problems because it would put too much strain on us to achieve the said goal. What we need to do, a recently issued warning of The International Stress Management Association (ISMA) says, is to keep our feet firmly on the ground and not ask for more than we could possibly achieve.
“[People] have such huge, high expectations of Christmas - and when you have high expectations there's usually one outcome. They want it to be wonderful, they want it to be loving and caring and expectations are set high. Really, you have to have realistic expectations to make sure your Christmas is stress free,” Ann McCracken, chairman of ISMA UK warns.
This is just one step that we can take to make sure that this Christmas is as close as possible to what we’d want it to be or, at least, less stressful than the previous one. According to Heart Research UK charity organization, others would be to use the Internet to avoid queues if possible, refrain from overeating and overdrinking and, of course, steer clear of crowded spaces.
Christmas, both organizations seem to be saying in more or less words, is about spending quality time with our loved ones and really feeling the Christmas spirit, and definitely not the rush to get things done as it’s become over recent years. “A 'harmless' activity like Christmas shopping can have a damaging effect on both our physiological and psychological well-being,” says Dr. John Turner, PhD, University of East London. So, let us try to find the Christmas spirit as it once was. Merry Christmas everybody!