Christmas burnout and how to avoid it

This time of the year can bring all sorts of pressures, but there is help at hand.

Conflict resolution

Dr Sheri Jacobson, a family conflict specialist at London’s Harley Therapy, says: ‘‘During an argument, you are in flight or fight mode –meaning stay and argue or run away.

If you’re going to argue: acknowledge the other person’s perspectives and think before you speak. If you are going to run: make it ‘‘measured flight’’, say, ‘‘I’m off to clear my head’’ and go for a walk and or do some breathing exercises.

‘‘Don’t dwell on arguments, and forget any illusions of perfection, peace and harmony. Just live in the moment.’’

Other people

Howard Napper, a breathing guru, says: ‘‘The easiest and most effective way to keep you in a state of relative calm is to breathe through the nostrils.

‘‘Inhale for the count of four seconds. Exhale for the count of eight seconds. Do as many repetitions as you can, or need, but always keep the exhale twice as long as the inhale.’’

Other people’s kids

You may be baffled or outraged by a parent’s lack of discipline and overindulgence of their rude and irritating offspring.

Unfortunately, it is Christmas and there is nowhere to hide, so you must ‘‘sit with these difficult feelings’’.

The only fail-safe solution is to play with any children in an enthusiastic and attentive manner as a form of camouflage for your real feelings.

Know that Christmas is something of a performance, on many levels, that’s just the way it is.

Stress

Research published earlier this year by the University of Michigan found that exposure to nature is as effective as taking pills to relieve stress.

Just 20 minutes will significantly reduce levels of the stress hormone, cortisol; add another 10 minutes – even if just sitting, and cortisol levels dropped at their greatest rate.

If no-one else can be bothered to go for a walk, go for a quick one alone.

Fatigue

The Wim Hof Method has been clinically proven to help its practitioners fight off bugs and inflammation. Allan Brownlie, a Wim Hof Method instructor, suggests a taste of its bracing benefits for combating inevitable festive fatigue.

‘‘Take a warm shower. Then, while the water is still warm, start to breathe in and breathe out nice and slow. Keep doing this for about a minute taking a total of 10 breaths. Then, turn the shower to cold.

‘‘The trick is to focus on breathing calmly again under the cold shower. The moment your breathing is under control, the cold will feel different.’’

Hangovers

Rehydrate with water, and coffee is a proven headache cure as it helps reduce inflammation in the brain. Others recommend Dioralyte for the dehydration. But by far the best way to cure a hangover is to not drink too much in the first place.

Digestion

‘‘We eat too much,’’ says nutritionist Rosemary Ferguson. If you’re FTB (full to bursting) ‘‘try to skip the odd meal and instead take a smoothie that is nutrient-dense and easy to digest to boost your energy levels.’’

She recommends blitzing till smooth: Five spears of asparagus, one avocado, one kiwifruit, one tablespoon oats, one teaspoon spirulina, a handful of spinach, and two cups of coconut water.

Sleep

Christmas creates the perfect storm for a bad night’s sleep: fretting over Christmas Day menus, too many late nights, sleeping over at relatives’ houses and excitable children waking you up too early, plus more alcohol and rich food than usual.

‘‘When I first developed insomnia in my 20s, I began doing things to ‘help’ me sleep,’’ says British sleep expert Dr Guy Meadows, the clinical director of the Sleep School.

‘‘I stopped drinking alcohol and coffee, and yet the more I chased sleep, the further it slipped away. What I learnt helped pioneer ‘acceptance therapy’: if you wake in the night with a racing mind, acknowledge the worry, then let it pass. Mindfully enjoy the benefits of being in a warm and comfortable bed. From there, sleep will probably emerge.’’