Holiday Tips for Transforming Stress

Holiday gatherings can produce stress. However with some awareness we can minimize it and enjoy the good.

Here are some ways that may help to keep your holiday less stressful.

You may simply change who you spend time with over the holidays. It may be just a case of awareness and choice. That situation is pretty easy to manage but other situations are more complex and difficult are: those that we feel we cannot change.

These situations usually involve our families. Every family presents some kind of challenge so it is best to bring some awareness to your situation ahead of time to help reduce stress..

Relationships and energy patterns
One way that can help is if you about everything as energy. We are all individual packages of energy. The environment around us is energy. We interface with others through this energy field co-creating flow and ease, or blocks and interference patterns or some combination thereof.
In our families the energetic patterns have been in place for a long time. Even if we have changed as a result of growing up and moving away, when we “return to the fold” we typically reenter the familial field and take on our old energetic roles.

Being conscious of our roles and how our energy is affected helps to change our part of the family dance. We can free ourselves and create a different experience even if no one else changes. At the very least we can neutrally observe the familiar dance and that alone can reduce our stress.

Identifying difficult energy patterns
Noticing what is happening in your body during interactions with others is a first step in shifting the flow of energy between you and others. Notice where there is constriction in your body and focus on opening it and creating more spaciousness. This is easier if you have already been practicing managing your energy, but any awareness is helpful.

Focus on gratitude
Another way to create a more harmonious flow of energy is to experience gratitude and focus on feeling it instead of reacting negatively to people, places or things.

A trigger to shift your energy
You can also think of one thing that you appreciate or enjoy so much that it is easy to feel good feelings as a result. Commit to using that as a trigger to shift your energy during gatherings where there may be stress.

When you are with a person who normally creates discomfort in you notice one thing about them that is admirable, healthy, or attractive—hold appreciation for that in your awareness and watch the interaction shift!

Happy Thanksgiving!!!!!!!!!!