The holidays are here and many people look forward to this time for some extra celebration, love and cheer. While we spend time hanging the tinsel and feeling the holiday spirit roll in around us, there’s another emotion many people often feel when it comes to the holidays – stress.  From party scheduling, to cookie baking, to tip-toeing around gifts, there are many additional things we have to consider, balance, and incorporate into our daily activities in a short amount of time. Navigating our way through these extra activities and pressures can easily wreak havoc on your mental health, but trying a few easy tips could help you maintain a healthy holiday balance:

Stick To Your Routine

It may be difficult to stick to your normal schedule during the holidays but it’s important to keep some sort of consistency. Eating, sleeping and exercise should all be regimens you should try hard to maintain.

Less Is More

While there is a lot of fun things to do around the holidays, overloading your schedule trying to attend every single event can get very overwhelming. Scaling back and giving yourself more time to recover from one event to the next allows that excitement to rebuild. If you have kids, have them narrow their holiday choices down to one or two events and be fully present during each one.

Learn To Say No

Saying no to parties, no to extravagant gifts, no to unwanted guests and no to anything that doesn’t support your happiness. The holidays can cause you to push limits, but setting personal boundaries, understanding them and sticking to them is a great way to minimize your stress levels.

Be Realistic

Make a pact with yourself during the holidays not to set the bar too high. We all want to feel the merry delight, but having too high of expectations can cause for extra spending, extra stress and extra nonsense. Focus on the things that make you happy and why you come together to celebrate.

Reach Out

The holidays are meant to bring people together and spread joy but this time can cause many feelings of loneliness and isolation. If you are feeling this way, seek out community, social or religious events, and spend time with loved ones if possible. If any feelings arise regarding suicide, you’re not alone and help is available, please contact 911 or call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 1(800)273-8255.