Stay Sane During the Holidays
Whether you’re staying at home or taking a trip away from the Oakland waterfront apartments for rent to visit family this year, the holidays are always a handful. With so many things to do and keep track of — decorating, getting presents, hosting — it’s easy for the stress levels to rise and for everything to become overwhelming.
The holidays don’t have to be a nightmare, however. There are plenty of ways to keep things chill (or at least keep them from getting too out of hand) and we’ve rounded a few of them up to help you maintain through the fall and winter. Read on, as we reveal the best ways to stay sane during the holidays.
Start With a Bit of Planning
One of the best ways to keep the holidays from getting hectic is to have a plan for what should be happening when. It will help keep you from getting overwhelmed with responsibilities and help break up the seemingly endless list of things to do into smaller, more manageable chunks for you to tackle.
When it comes to gifts, set a budget for yourself and stick to it. Make a list of everyone you plan on getting gifts for, then calculate how much you can feasibly spend without breaking the bank. Divvy up the pot among your gift recipients, and don’t look back — you’ll be saving yourself a lot of headache that way.
You should also take the measure of working downtime into your schedule. It’s easy to get wrapped up in the feeling of needing to stay on the move while you’re in “holiday mode,” so if you can schedule a few gaps for yourself to recuperate, you’ll be doing yourself and your family a big favor. Everyone will be more relaxed, and you’ll be able to hold onto a semblance of sanity for the holidays.
Lastly, you might want to add meals to the list of things to map out beforehand. When you’re busy, figuring out what to do for breakfast and dinner becomes that much more complicated. If you have your meals planned out in advance, however, you can easily get what you need from the store and ease right into cooking like a pro.
Be Sure Not to Overdo It
It’s difficult to overstate this point. You might think that around the holidays, you need to personally handle every single detail to ensure that things go off without a hitch. Cut that out! You have a family, or at the very least some friends. Learn to delegate and share responsibility among the group so that no one member becomes overburdened by the monumental task of planning and executing your festivities.
As an additional point, don’t feel obligated to attend every get-together you’ve been invited to. Everyone has their limits, and there’s no shame in admitting yours. If you’re feeling overwhelmed, be brave enough to say, “sorry, I’m just not feeling up to it.” It’ll keep your energy up, and keep you from getting sick because you wore yourself out.
For those parties you do attend, take it easy. Drinking to excess is a large factor in “losing it” over the holidays. Again, know your limits and respect them. Don’t overindulge, and when you do party, make sure you get plenty of rest afterwards so you can return yourself to full strength.
Make Your Life Easier
Why do things the hard way when you don’t have to? There are plenty of shortcuts and modern conveniences you can avail yourself of that will make the holidays that much easier. Online shopping is a big one, and can save you on time stuck at the store that you can be using to get ahead on your other holiday goals.
It’s an increasingly popular trend, and, “the overlaps between holiday online shopping and year-round ecommerce are striking,” says Shopify Plus. According to their Holiday Online Shopping Trends and Statistics for 2017-2018, there was a massive increase in online sales during the holidays from 2016 to 2017, with the numbers showing totals of $94.4 billion and $108.15 billion, respectively.
So many other people are turning to shopping online precisely because it’s so convenient, and they’re saving themselves a ton of stress and hassle in the process. Be sure to capitalize on this trend for yourself, and cut out the unnecessary complications from your holiday life.
Remember What’s Important
Are the holidays all about tiring yourself out, endless planning, and driving yourself crazy? Of course not; they’re about friends, family, and cheer. What are you stressing yourself out over when you should be taking the time to enjoy the holidays?
If the house isn’t 100% clean, that’s OK. If some of your plans go a little of track, that’s fine too. The real reason of the season is spending quality time with the people you love, and you should never lose sight of that:
“The holiday season is a time to be spent with loved ones - family, friends and significant others. We must not take these people for granted; we must also remember that not every one of these categories exist in people’s lives...My suggestion to you? Focus on enjoying this holiday season with whomever and with whatever makes you happiest; keep it simple and joyous, as it's meant to be.”
Keep this very important message in mind, and you’ll find that the holiday stress pales in comparison to the joy you derive from being with your people. Keep them close, and you’ll be much better off retaining your sanity for the holidays.
Make the Oakland Waterfront Apartments Your Place of Peace
Places like Fourth Street East make it easy to unwind and recharge, regardless of whatever other chaos is going on in life. Here, where a new chapter is being written on the evolution of Oakland’s waterfront, you can start a new chapter for your peace and serenity. Enjoy the splendors of one of the city’s finest communities. Check out everything that Fourth Street East has to offer, and drop us a line to make this your new home in the East Bay.
