Blog Short #214: Kick the Holiday Blues to the Curb With These Strategies

Photo by TerryJ, Courtesy of iStock Photo

Holidays sometimes bring on the “moody blues” and leave you in a funk. All that cheer and expectation is lovely unless you’re not feeling it. Not to mention, there’s a lot to do, which can be overwhelming.

How do you keep yourself emotionally balanced amidst all the hullabaloo?

My first suggestion is not to analyze it too deeply. Dredging up every possible reason you’re not feeling up to snuff probably won’t help you—not right now.

You can save that for quieter times when you have the energy to work on it, but for the next three to four weeks, let’s use a simple strategy to help out.

It’s called “Shift and Lift.” Here’s how it works.

The Shift

The “shift” involves redirecting your attention. There are four ways to accomplish this.

1. Start and finish something.

Select an activity that will engross you and give you a sense of accomplishment. You could do a small project that you enjoy and feel good about finishing. Make sure it’s simple and manageable. You don’t want to add stress.

2. Make your to-do list for the next several weeks.

Start with the whole list and then divide your tasks into each week. Be very specific and assign each task a particular day.

Having everything out of your head and on paper will help relieve the stress. If you can delegate anything to someone else, do it.

This list can cover everything you do, including on-the-job tasks, holiday-related tasks, and home tasks.

Shifting your focus to the big picture while organizing the details is relieving and will give you some momentum.

3. Put a stop to ruminations.

If you find yourself ruminating about a problem or issue, write it down.

Keep a “rumination list” handy for this purpose.

Once you write it out, let it go. When it comes up again, remind yourself that it’s on your rumination list, and you can attend to it later after the holidays.

Writing worries on a list to revisit when you can apply your thinking to them is a good way to stop the immediate overthinking.

You can use this strategy any time of year, not just during the holidays.

Another significant benefit is that jotting down the problem to work on later allows your subconscious mind to begin the process while focusing your attention on the present.

Ruminating only exaggerates your sense of helplessness and inflates the problem in your mind.

4. Take note of your distorted thoughts.

When you’re in a bad mood, it’s easy to exaggerate and catastrophize.

One negative thought begets the next one, and once you go down that rabbit hole, it’s hard to climb back out.

In particular, watch out for all-or-nothing thinking.

Moodiness causes you to narrow your view so that you have a skewed interpretation of what’s happening. And then you apply that interpretation to everything else.

Negativity narrows while positivity expands.

In other words, watch out for your inner Scrooge and put him in time-out.

Now for part two.

The Lift

Shifting is an exercise that neutralizes your dropping mood by blocking the path of the descent.

The “lift” swings you upwards by adding positivity. Not crazy, toxic positivity where you pretend everything is peachy, but using some strategies that will balance things out and energize you.

Here are six you can try.

Write a Gratitude List

Gratitude lists have power.

When you take the time to write out a list of things you’re thankful for, even small things, you automatically shift your outlook.

You can’t bemoan everything that’s not going well and focus on what’s going right simultaneously.

By writing the list, you engage your thinking mind and reinforce your thoughts through motor activity (writing) and visual feedback (seeing the words on the page).

The exercise itself produces a swing in the opposite direction.

To make it more powerful, use emoticons if you’re typing it. It’s fun and lifts you more! If you’re writing by hand, doodle pictures or symbols.

List ten things. That’s enough to shift your mindset.

Engage in Social Contact

When you’re in a blue mood and alone or isolated, you’re more likely to become increasingly pessimistic. You need to break up that pattern.

It’s hard to think your way out of it, so making social contact with someone is a quick and sure way to interrupt the downward trend.

Call a friend and chat. Make a date to have coffee with someone. Leave the house and go somewhere where there are people. Don’t sit and ruminate.

A change of environment and interaction with others will lift your mood.

Take a Walk Outside

Taking a walk expands and shifts your mind.

Research has shown that walking increases creativity.

There’s something about being outside and moving that suspends you from your current mood and circumstances and opens up new ideas.

Sometimes, you have insights or epiphanies while walking, and other times, you become energized to take some action you hadn’t previously thought of.

Aerobic exercise of any kind for at least thirty minutes raises your serotonin and dopamine levels, both of which are related to mood.

Walking is also helpful for reducing anxiety and overwhelm.

Engage in a Favorite Holiday Activity

Wrap presents and watch one of your favorite holiday movies. Pick something heartwarming.

If you like cooking, bake cookies or holiday bread.

Decorate. String lights everywhere.

Choose whatever you like that you know will lift your spirits.

Read a Good Novel

Fiction lifts you out of your current environment into an imaginary world. It also reduces stress.

A study conducted at Mindlab International at the University of Sussex in the UK found that reading for only six minutes can reduce stress levels by 68% – significantly more than taking a walk, listening to music, or having a cup of tea.

Dr. Lewis, a cognitive neuropsychologist who conducted the study, says this about reading:

“This is more than merely a distraction but an active engaging of the imagination as the words on the printed page stimulate your creativity and cause you to enter what is essentially an altered state of consciousness.”

So grab your favorite novel or author, and dive into a book. Not only will you get a reprieve from your current mood, but the effects are likely to last long after you stop reading.

Do Something for Someone Else

Charitable acts of any kind are a balm for the soul, especially when you need a lift.

It might be challenging to pull yourself out of a funk enough to attend to someone else, but it’s worth doing.

You don’t need to do something grand or far outside your usual environment. It can be as simple as driving your neighbor to pick up their car from the repair shop or making coffee for your partner when they get up in the morning.

Anything you do that smooths someone’s way can give you a lift.

It doesn’t matter if you get a big reaction or any reaction at all. Just knowing that you helped someone or gave them a small kindness can make you feel better.

Helping others takes you out of the narrow environment of rumination and self-indulgence.

Give it a try if you don’t do it already.

One Last Piece of Advice

Don’t wait for your mood to shift to eliminate the blues. Take action now, and your mood will change. It’s the horse before the cart.

Action forces you to widen your narrow mindset and opens it up to a larger, more positive narrative.

That’s all for today.

Have a great week!

All my best,

Barbara