9 Essential Self-Care Tips for the Holiday Season

The holiday season is a time of joy, togetherness, and celebration—but it can also bring stress, exhaustion, and overwhelm. Amidst the hustle and bustle, it’s crucial to prioritize your well-being. Here’s a deeper dive into nine practical self-care tips to help you stay balanced and at peace this holiday season.

1. Set Boundaries

Between family gatherings, gift exchanges, and work parties, your schedule can fill up quickly. Saying “no” to events or obligations that don’t align with your energy levels or values is an act of self-care. Politely declining an invitation can free up time to recharge.

2. Stay Hydrated

It’s easy to forget the basics amidst the excitement. Drinking plenty of water keeps your energy steady and helps counteract indulgent holiday treats. Keep a reusable water bottle handy as a gentle reminder.

3. Prioritize Sleep

Late-night festivities are fun, but consistently losing sleep can take a toll on your mental and physical health. Make rest a non-negotiable priority. Stick to a regular bedtime when possible and allow your body to recover.

4. Take Breaks

The hustle of holiday shopping or prepping for guests can be overwhelming. Schedule short breaks throughout the day to pause, breathe, or step outside for fresh air. Even 10 minutes can make a difference.

5. Limit Social Media

While social media can inspire, it often fuels comparison and anxiety during the holidays. Take a step back from scrolling and focus on meaningful, in-person interactions or quiet moments with yourself.

6. Move Your Body

Staying active is a great way to boost your mood and relieve stress. A simple walk around the block, a quick yoga session, or even dancing to your favorite holiday songs can help you feel refreshed.

7. Practice Gratitude

Amid the holiday chaos, it’s easy to focus on what’s missing or stressful. Shift your perspective by jotting down three things you’re grateful for each day. Gratitude fosters positivity and keeps your spirits lifted.

8. Treat Yourself

The holidays often revolve around giving, but don’t forget to treat yourself. Whether it’s a cozy blanket, a favorite snack, or a good book, small indulgences can bring you joy and comfort.

9. Ask for Help

You don’t have to do everything on your own. Delegate tasks or ask friends and family for support. Sharing the load can ease stress and create opportunities for connection.

The holiday season should be a time of joy—not burnout. By incorporating these self-care strategies, you can enjoy the season while keeping your mental and physical health intact. Remember: taking care of yourself is not selfish; it’s essential.

Wishing you peace and happiness this holiday season!

Ways to Cope With Stress

Stress is one of the most common challenges that we experience. It can have huge ramifications on our physical health, mental health, cognitive functioning, and emotional health so it’s essential to address stress and implement coping skills to help reduce the impact on our wellbeing.

This article will focus on a few coping skills to help reduce stress, but if you are looking for more in-depth information in an educational format, you can find our online Mindfulness & Stress Management class on our webpage. The program will delve more deeply into the negative impacts of stress, importance to address stress, stress management techniques, mindfulness, and several homework assignments to ensure your progress throughout the class.

In this article, we will look at coping strategies in a couple of different areas: physical and cognitive. You may notice that everyone handles stress differently. Some people take on stress more in a physical way, such as tension in your shoulders or back, disturbances in sleep or even headaches or stomachaches. It would be recommended that that person looks toward coping skills that take into account physical activities, such as exercise, massage, or yoga. 

Another example is the difference in the way in which we deal with stress is the person who is more impacted by cognitive effects. This is a person who may get stuck mentally in their stress, ruminate on the problems and have difficulty shutting their mind down. This person would most likely benefit from cognitive activities that address coping with stress, such as recognizing unhealthy thinking, changing your perspective or engaging in positive self-talk.

TIPS TO COPE WITH STRESS:

Behavioral Strategies:

• Physical stress relief, such as regular exercise or a daily walk

• Mindfulness and relaxation focused exercises. This may include a long bath, meditation, mindfulness practice, etc.

• Happiness activities: engage in activities that promote your happiness such as doing yoga, listening to music, or getting a massage.

• Write in a journal. The act of writing can provide an outlet for the release of emotions and thoughts, which can help with healing and coping.

• Consider emotional support activities such as talking to friends or family 

• Keep things in moderation: coffee, diet, and alcohol. Overuse of substances can create further dependency as become a crutch with coping.

Cognitive Strategies:

• Cognitive Restructuring: the act of recognizing your unhealthy thinking patterns and altering them to more positive and healthy cognition.

• Recognize unhealthy thinking patterns. By being able to catch yourself when you are thinking negatively or even ruminating on your stress, you can counteract its impact and reduce future experiences of stress.

• Perspective: Accept what you cannot control and do your best. The less we focus on perfectionism and attempting to control

• Use Positive self-talk: Try saying positive things to yourself daily. You can say things, like: “I can get through this,” “This is hard, but I can do it.”

Prevention:

• Balance: Maintain a better balance so that you do not get stressed in the future. This may include saying “no” and declining some events as well as maintaining a good balance with work-life so that life does not become overwhelming.

• Learn your triggers: For the future, learn triggers that lead to high levels of anxiety in your life. This way you can decrease or avoid these triggers and better cope.

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ONLINE SESSIONS

For more information on virtual services, see Online Coaching with Dr. Shelley. Remote services are provided online through a HIPAA compliant web portal, which allows you to be in the comfort of your own home during your sessions and have increased privacy. Appointments may be booked online or simply email Dr. Shelley with any questions or appointment requests.

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Online Stress Management Class

Life in Balance: Stress Management & Mindfulness program is an 8-module online class to help you better cope with stress and anxiety. This program is a self-guided virtual class that you can complete at your own pace. Click here for more information.

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Blog written by: Dr. Shelley Sommerfeldt, Clinical Psychologist, Relationship Coach & Founder of the Loving Roots Project, an online wellness practice specializing in personal growth, mental wellness, & relationship betterment.

Follow the Loving Roots Project on social media for weekly blogs & video posts:

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The Healing Power of Journaling

Why is writing so beneficial? Journaling is a method of expressing and releasing thoughts and feelings. It can be a powerful tool for healing. Just as talking to someone about feelings, experiences, and emotions, journaling can also allow for the release of these thoughts and allow you to emotionally process what you’ve been dealing with. This essentially relieves the brain of holding all of these experiences within your mind and body and allows for a release, which can be essential to healing and feeling better. Journaling allows you to be open and honest with yourself. This type of truthful expressive writing about your thoughts and feelings can be quite therapeutic. It has been noted to improve both your cognitive and emotional wellbeing. 

The act of writing accesses your left brain, which is your rational and analytical side. While your right brain is creative, emotional and intuitive. So while your left brain is distracted with the task of writing, this allows your right brain to tap into the emotional and intuitive side to express your feelings. This can be very helpful in accessing both parts of your brain to clarify your thoughts, feelings, and know yourself on a deeper level. This specific act of writing can tap into your brainpower, improve mental wellbeing and get your creative juices flowing. 

Benefits of Journaling:

1. Express & clarify emotions, thoughts & experiences

Writing can help you to process your feelings on a subject. By writing, you can thoroughly explore what you are feeling and openly and honestly. This allows for further healing and even clarification on things that you may be struggling with.

2. Improve self-confidence

Journaling can bring on self-confidence as you are better able to explore your thoughts and feelings, thus feeling more confident and secure within yourself. Feeling more confident goes hand-in-hand with feeling secure and strong in your thoughts, actions, and feelings on a subject.

3. Increase self-awareness

Through the act of writing, you can more thoroughly explore your feelings, thoughts, and therefore, increase your understanding of yourself. This is the act of self-awareness and being more clear and confident with who you are as a person. Having a strong sense of self-awareness can also build higher confidence and help you to feel better about yourself. 

4. Reduce stress

Journaling allows you to express yourself, similarly to talking to a friend or therapist. Through this act of divulging your thoughts and feelings, you can reduce stress and anxiety that you may be holding in. Writing allows for these emotions to be expressed and often allows for feelings of relief, which can reduce stress.

5. Work on problem-solving

Writing can be a great way to brainstorm and explore ways to problem-solve challenges in your life. Through writing about problems, feelings, and experiences, you can work on strategizing and solving problems in your life. This helps you to explore various outcomes and ways in which you’d like to work toward handling difficult situations, which can be very helpful. 

6. Improve memory & cognitive function

Our brains require activities to stay alert, receptive and continually growing. These activities keep our brains and cognitive function healthy. Writing and journaling can be one of those great mental tasks which help to promote good memory and strong cognitive functioning.

7. Better coping with mental health issues 

Stress, anxiety, and depression are some of the most common emotional and mental health issues in the United States. Many people require various strategies to treat these conditions, which are often through therapy, coaching and psychiatric medication. There are many self-help strategies, however, and journaling is one that is often used in conjunction with therapy and coaching or simply as an ongoing strategy to help process these feelings. This is because journaling helps to boost coping and is overall a wonderful coping strategy to employ in your toolbox of self-care.

8. Help with goal setting

Writing helps to explore things within yourself such as working toward goals and handling challenges in your life. Writing things down can often make it feel more “real” and help you to visualize a step-by-step plan for achieving goals in your life. 

Tips to Start a Journaling Practice:

The first step in starting a journaling practice is to buy a journal, notebook, pad of paper or anything you like and just begin writing! It’s recommended that you set a goal of about 20 minutes per day. Also, choose a time of day in your schedule to plug in this activity and make it a goal. Perhaps you spend a few minutes each morning writing before starting your day or at night, to recap your day and your experiences. 

Many people may need a bit more structure to start, so if that’s you, then one idea may be to use daily or weekly prompts. Prompts are questions or themes that you can write about, which keep you focused on a topic and a bit more organized with your writing.

If your purpose of journaling is to work on emotional healing then ask yourself questions that you can write about that are related to healing, such as, “how can I focus on my healing today?” Or “what did I do today that has helped me to heal?” Another theme may be to focus on personal growth and write about your strengths or personal challenges that you’d like to grow from and overcome.

A gratitude journal is another common theme idea. You can write statements of gratitude each day. Writing about something that you are grateful for can give your mind a positive mental shift. 

I hope you’ve found these tips helpful and that you can start your writing journey.

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ONLINE SERVICES ARE AVAILABLE

If you are needing support, virtual services are available, see Online Coaching with Dr. Shelley. Services are provided by telephone or online through a HIPAA-compliant telehealth portal, which allows you to be in the comfort of your own home during sessions & have increased privacy. Sessions are available for individuals or couples. Appointments can be booked online or simply email Dr. Shelley with any questions or appointment requests.

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Blog written by: Dr. Shelley Sommerfeldt, Clinical Psychologist, Relationship Coach & Founder of the Loving Roots Project, an online wellness practice specializing in personal growth, mental wellness, & relationship betterment.

Follow the Loving Roots Project on social media for weekly blogs & videos:

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Self-Help Tips for Managing Depression

With numbers as high as 1 in 6, there are many, many people who are impacted by mental health disorders and one of the most common is depression. The National Institute of Mental Health estimates that more than 16 million people in the United States, over the age of 18 will experience at least one major depressive episode in a year. Statistics show that 50% of people do not seek treatment. 

Depression is a serious illness and many people respond best to intensive treatment, which may include psychotherapy and medication. However, there are some self-help tips that many people find helpful in the management of their symptoms. These self-help strategies are not meant to replace treatment, but to be a supplement and additional assistance to help combat depression and put people on the path toward betterment. 

Symptoms of Depression: 

• Depressed mood

• Sadness

• Hopelessness

• Diminished interest or pleasure in activities

• Significant weight loss or weight gain

• Sleep disturbance (oversleep or inability to sleep) 

• Psychomotor agitation

• Fatigue and loss of energy 

• Feelings of worthlessness or guilt

• Diminished ability to concentrate

• Indecisiveness or recurrent thoughts of death

10 Tips for Managing Depressed Mood:

1. Good Nutrition:

It comes as no surprise, but there is a strong link between healthy eating, good nutrition, and mental health. As we know, there is a strong mind-body connection and therefore, taking care of your body also helps with the care of your mind. This means eating healthy whole foods and cutting out the processed, sugary and refined carb foods can help to improve mood. It is also important to manage caffeine and alcohol intake as both of these substances can play a direct role in mental and emotional wellbeing.

2. Journaling: 

The act of writing is a method to process emotions by fully and honestly disclosing how you are feeling. Processing of your feelings is essential to the management of emotions. Journaling provides an outlet to express your feelings in a safe and non-judgmental space. One specific example of journaling that may be helpful is a gratitude practice. By journaling each day on something or several things that you feel grateful for, it can help to shift your mindset onto something positive, which can improve mood and reduce depression. 

3. Exercise & Physical Activities:

Trying to get more physically active can be very beneficial during times of depression. It is often the opposite of what someone feels like doing, but there is a lot of research that shows the benefit of exercise and the increase of endorphins and other chemicals in the brain during physical activity, which helps to combat depression. So try and push yourself to try a quick walk several times a week.

4. Social Support:

Get involved with social groups or engage with friends. It can be helpful to talk and express your feelings to others. Having meaningful connected relationships are important in times of need and support. Be sure to surround yourself with positive and healthy people. There are also places to find new friends through groups and social networks, such as events on facebook.com or interest groups through sites such as meetup.com. 

5. Mindfulness:

Engaging in mindfulness meditation can serve as a key element in managing difficult moods. Mindfulness is the practice of being fully present, aware, and in the moment. This allows you to calm yourself through breathing and a meditative state to be very aware of your emotional state and how you are feeling. This is important during a depressive episode because emotions can be overwhelming and very stressful. This is especially true if you are finding yourself obsessing over your thoughts or that your negative thinking is controlling you and/or your mood. Take a few moments each day to implement a mindfulness practice to allow you to calm your thoughts, mind, and better manage your mood. 

6. Outdoor activities/Sunshine & Fresh Air:

Research shows getting outdoors and surrounding yourself with nature can actually be helpful in lifting one’s mood. As we already know, physical activity can be helpful, but so can getting sunshine. Spending time outside and in sunshine has been found to be effective in combating depression, especially if someone is dealing with a seasonal depression, which occurs more in the cold winter months. 

7. Keep Stress Down:

Managing of life’s stressors is essential for overall coping. Many of the same coping skills that people use and find effective that keep stress levels down, also play an important role in reducing depression. When someone is struggling with depression, they can also feel overwhelmed with feelings of stress. Implementing coping strategies that focus on relaxation and the management of stress, can also help cope with depression.

8. Hobbies & Happiness Activities:

When we are feeling down, it’s important to try to find activities to engage in. This is helpful as a distraction, it also gets you physically and mentally active and depending on the activity, it can help you to express emotions and boost feelings of happiness. Be sure to look for new and engaging hobbies or even everyday activities that could bring enjoyment. Again, it is common that when someone is feeling depressed, they often do not want to engage in a hobby or activity, but just remember it’s these activities, which can help with the management of depressed mood. 

9. Reduce Negative Thinking:

While this is incredibly challenging to do, especially if you are feeling depressed, it does play an important role in managing mood. The power of positive thinking can have strong positive outcomes and is essential in reducing depression. There are several techniques which can help to boost positive thoughts including keeping mood journals, tracking and altering negative thinking, positive thinking apps and engaging in daily affirmations. Positive affirmations are a simple technique to say positive things to yourself which will help to increase the positivity in your thought process. This means starting each day with saying things like, “I can do this,” “I am strong,” or “I deserve to be happy.”

10. Seek Professional Help: 

Major Depressive Disorder is very real and can be a difficult condition. Although this blog is about some example self-help strategies to manage depression, it is important to point out that for many people, self-help strategies will not be as effective as medical treatment. Many people often need a jump start to fighting their depression either by seeking psychotherapy or with medication or both. This is especially true if you ever have thoughts of suicide. Seeking treatment is essential. Depression is a very real and extremely difficult condition to face. There are several treatment options available.

You can search for psychologists in your area for psychotherapy strategies that treat depression, such as Cognitive Behavioral Therapy. An online directory that may be helpful in finding psychologists in your area is psychologytoday.com. It may also be helpful to check with your health insurance plan to find out what your mental health treatment plan options are and search directly through your health insurance for providers in your area. Psychiatrists can also be very effective in prescribing appropriate antidepressant medication that may be helpful in treating depression. You may check with your general practitioner for recommendations and referrals for psychiatric treatment in your area. 

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ONLINE SERVICES ARE AVAILABLE

If you are needing support, virtual services are available, see Online Coaching with Dr. Shelley. Services are provided by telephone or online through a HIPAA-compliant telehealth portal, which allows you to be in the comfort of your own home during sessions & have increased privacy. Sessions are available for individuals or couples. Appointments can be booked online or simply email Dr. Shelley with any questions or appointment requests.

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Resources:

For More Information on Depression: https://www.depression.org

National Suicide Prevention Lifeline: (800) 273-8255

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Blog written by: Dr. Shelley Sommerfeldt, Clinical Psychologist, Relationship Coach & Founder of the Loving Roots Project, an online wellness practice specializing in personal growth, mental wellness, & relationship betterment.

Follow the Loving Roots Project on social media for weekly blogs & video posts:

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30 Activities to Reduce Stress

We live in a fast-paced, quick moving and stressful world. At times, it’s hard to even find a moment of calmness. Stress impacts us physically and mentally. It impacts the ability to focus, to be more productive, it disturbs sleep, impacts relationships as well as overall happiness. Most of the time, it’s impossible to fully remove all the stress in our lives, so what else can we do? How can we plug in a relaxing activity that will offset and lower stress? 

Well, there are lots of fun ideas out there to help relieve stress, but first, let’s discuss how you begin such a routine.

Take the time: 

This is probably the most important step to learning to relax and reduce stress. It is most crucial because no matter how many relaxing ideas we come up with if you do not take the time to actually pause and take a break, it will never work. Set aside a reasonable amount of time that is needed and set up a plan for how you will accomplish this. We often feel we do not have enough time as it is. So find a few moments in your daily routine to engage in a fun and relaxing activity. For example, you may set a reminder on your phone to meditate or go for a walk or you may plan to play relaxing music in the car on your way home from work every day. It’s just important that you find the right thing that works for you and you set aside the time to actually follow through with the activity.

Relax your mind: 

Be in the present moment when you are engaging in the activity. This is key to actually relaxing. Many people may focus on the physical aspects of relaxation, which is also important, but if you are not relaxing your mind, then your body also cannot relax. Think of how strong the mind-body connection can be and how important it is to address both aspects of ourselves at one time. If you get a massage, which may feel wonderful physically, but you do not address the mental aspect of calming, then your mind stays in a state of stress; therefore, impacting your body. Engage in mindfulness and take a brief mental pause. Also, if you are not mentally engaged in the activity and you are staying in a stressed state of mind, then you will not experience the maximum benefit. The goal here is to relax your mind as best you can and stay focused in the present moment with the activity that you are engaged in. In order to relax the mind, slow yourself, calm your breathing, and focus on your current state.

Practice: 

Now is the important step of finding an activity that is actually helpful for you in both mind and body that will help you to relax. Try a variety of activities and practice! What one person does to relax, may not help the next person. It is important that you find the right activity for you. You may hate reading, so reading a book will not be a relaxing activity for you so while that may be helpful for many, it might not work for you. Start by making a list of activities that you think would be relaxing or that you have seen others do that helped them to relax. Try them! Take the time to test out some different activities to see if you find them relaxing. Be sure to find activities that will target both mind and body.

Here is a list of 30 fun activities that will help reduce stress:

1. Going for a walk or exercising

2. Taking a bath or shower

3. Practicing deep breathing

4. Reading a book, newspaper or magazine    

5. Practicing meditation or mindfulness

6. Listening to relaxing music

7. Getting a massage

8. Sewing, knitting, cross stitching 

9. Doing yoga

10. Petting your dog or cat

11. Horseback riding

12. Writing in a journal

13. Reading a book

14. Talking to a friend

15. Watching a movie

16. Playing a musical instrument

17. Arts and crafts

18. Gardening

19. Playing games

20. Practicing gratitude

21. Completing puzzles

22. Taking a nap

23. Having a spa night at home

24. Practicing positive self-talk

25. Engaging in a hobby

26. Drinking soothing tea

27. Getting a good night’s sleep

28. Reducing caffeine intake

29. Disconnecting from tech

30. Trying aromatherapy

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Online services are available

If you are needing support or are interested in relationship coaching, virtual services are available, see Online Coaching with Dr. Shelley. Services are provided by telephone or online through a HIPAA-compliant telehealth portal, which allows you to be in the comfort of your own home during sessions & have increased privacy. Sessions are available for individuals or couples. Appointments can be booked online or simply email Dr. Shelley with any questions or appointment requests.

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ONLINE STRESS MANAGEMENT CLASS

Life in Balance: Stress Management & Mindfulness program is an 8-module online class to help you better cope with stress and anxiety, as well as learn strategies for better balance and incorporate mindfulness. This program is a self-guided virtual class that you can complete at your own pace. Click here for more information.

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Blog written by: Dr. Shelley Sommerfeldt, Clinical Psychologist, Relationship Coach & Founder of the Loving Roots Project, an online wellness practice specializing in personal growth, mental wellness, & relationship betterment.

Follow the Loving Roots Project on social media for weekly blogs & videos:

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Finding Joy Through Hobbies

The demands of life can sometimes leave us feeling stuck in daily routines with an overall dissatisfaction in life. So how do we change that? How can we add a bit of excitement back into our lives and increase our overall satisfaction and happiness?

Well, one way is to give hobbies a try! January is National Hobby Month and while hobbies are just common activities that people engage in as something fun to do, they often do not realize that hobbies also have so many benefits for our mind and body wellness. Below, I will describe a few.

Here are 5 Benefits of Hobbies:

1.Coping Skills

Hobbies can serve as coping skills and be positive strategies to help you cope with challenging situations. They can be an outlet for expression of emotions, whether that’s through art, drawing, writing, music, group meetings, painting, etc. Finding an outlet to express your feelings is crucial to coping with life’s challenges. Hobbies can also serve as a good distraction from everyday stressors. While hobbies provide us with something fun to do, they can also serve as a distraction from thinking about everyday stress and challenges that we face. This can be a critical component of an overall self-care program.

2. Sense of achievement and mastery

Hobbies and new activities can give us a surprising sense of achievement through growth and mastery. Learning something new can be a challenge; however, when we begin to develop mastery with the new activity, this helps us gain new skills and make us feel good about ourselves and our accomplishments. This not only provides joy, but it can also boost self-esteem and confidence. Just don’t forget to have fun with the activity that you’ve chosen and not get too caught up in the competition of it!

3. Social connection

One of the most beneficial areas to which hobbies can provide, is an avenue for social connection. Many hobbies are in fact ones that you may do alone; however, there are often groups that meet to participate in the activity all together. For example, there are often online groups, forums, workshops or other ways that people connect through a shared interest. For people who are seeking social connection this can be a huge support. It allows for a feeling of togetherness, companionship and shared interests, which reduce isolation and loneliness. 

4. Meaningful activity

Hobbies can also provide an activity to engage in that can be meaningful and provide a sense of fulfillment. Often times, people find that when they are engaging in something that they enjoy, life feels more fulfilling and that they are living with more meaning and purpose. This increases satisfaction with life and overall happiness. It also helps to take us out of living a day-to-day routine that may feel mundane or boring. Hobbies can bring a new joyful purpose to one’s life.

5. Mental or physical stimulation

Depending on the type of hobby or activity that you are involved in, some provide mental stimulation that can be good for your brain and mental functioning, while others can provide beneficial physical stimulation. Activities, such as reading, puzzles, needlepoint, etc. allow you to mentally focus, which can stimulate your thought process in a new and different ways as well as work on memory and other cognitive tasks. This can be helpful for your mind and cognitive abilities. Hobbies that provide physical stimulation include things like playing in a sports league, walking, hiking, travel, etc. These can be helpful to increase your exercise levels and keep you physically healthy.

So, if you aren’t already engaged in a hobby or haven’t considered starting one, you should now! Try searching online for some new activities or groups near you. Think of things that interest you and go for it. There are so many great benefits to come.

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ONLINE SESSIONS AVAILABLE

If you are needing support, virtual services are available, see Online Coaching with Dr. Shelley. Services are provided by telephone or online through a HIPAA-compliant telehealth portal, which allows you to be in the comfort of your own home during sessions & have increased privacy. Appointments can be booked online or simply email Dr. Shelley with any questions or appointment requests.

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Blog written by: Dr. Shelley Sommerfeldt, Clinical Psychologist, Relationship Coach & Founder of the Loving Roots Project, an online wellness practice specializing in personal growth, mental wellness, & relationship betterment.

Follow the Loving Roots Project on social media for weekly blogs & video posts:

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