Every year our Christmas celebration gets bigger and bigger. My husband and I are empty nesters yet the grandbabies keep arriving. While I am crazy about each and everyone in our family, I tend to get overwhelmed by all that needs to be done. Coping with Christmas during the pandemic is especially challenging.
Our Governor has our state almost completely shutdown which makes shopping difficult. While we ordered quite a few things on line, I still had to go to the brick and mortar for some items. There will be no visiting with our son and his girls this year. He recently divorced his wife and his world is upside down. My girls are having difficulty getting along with each other. Because they ruined our Thanksgiving celebration, we fear the same for Christmas.
Here are a few ideas I use to help me cope.
Ask For Help
First, I recommend you ask for help. As a wife and mother, I did all the Christmas shopping and gift wrapping for years. I also put up the tree and all the decorations. As our family grew, the job grew too big for me. I sent money to my son to buy for his family. I then enlisted my husband to shop for toys for the local grandkids. He recovered some of his boy hood memories while shopping!
We wrapped presents together. Often on Christmas day I have to work, my husband cooks Christmas dinner with the help of my daughter. We survived.
I am enlisting help again this year.
Guard Your Health
Secondly, guard your emotional and physical health. While Christmas can be fun, it can also bring about strong emotions. For example, I tend to get sad at major holidays because I miss family and friends who have passed away. Also, these feelings can be made worse by shutdowns and group size restrictions.
I have not seen our son and his family in over a year. Our sweet granddaughters are growing up fast and we missed too much time already. I put a time limit to my self pity or I would cry every day.
I also know if I don’t get enough rest I tend to become more depressed. So, I make myself get at least seven hours of sleep a night. If you work and have children, this can be a challenge. However, you can’t take care of them if you don’t take care of yourself.
I also pay attention to my diet and exercise. Our gyms are closed but I can still walk and run up and down the stairs. Anything to get the blood flowing and oxygen to my body.
Laugh
It might seem counter intuitive to laugh when you are overwhelmed and/or depressed. I look for things that amuse me. My youngest grandbabies are fun to play with and they make me laugh. Even times when I have been deeply depressed, I had the ability to laugh once in awhile. Laughing can truly lift my spirits even if only for a short time.
Our family loves the movie “Christmas Vacation” with Chevy Chase. The same gags and pranks make us laugh year after year. If you have never watched it, I highly recommend it for light entertainment.
Take a Time Out
Sometimes taking a time out to do anything that helps me relax is priceless. I try reading a book, listening to music or soaking in a warmth bath. Doing this right before bed can help me sleep better. What ever you choose, make sure it is relaxing for you.
After a time out, you may be surprised at your ability to reset and focus on your tasks for the day. If I find myself bumping up against a deadline without much progress, i take a time out, even if it is only five minutes.
My hope for you is that employing any or all of these ideas will help you make this a fun holiday even though it will be different than past years. This pandemic will end fairly soon and we can get on to living in society again. Until then, I wish you Happy Holidays!
Feel free to leave a comment below. What are your thoughts? What helps you cope during this pandemic?
Photo by Norman Tsui on Unsplash
