• START THESE PRACTICES EARLY (FOR NEXT YEAR START IN OCTOBER/NOVEMBER)
• PRAY/MEDITATE (PRAY FOR YOUR SPIRIT TO ALWAYS BE GROUNDED, HAVE PEACE, BE JOYFUL, AND HAVE THE STRENGTH OF MIND TO NOT BE OVERWHELMED BY CHAOS/STRESS)
• PLAN AHEAD – SCHEDULE DATES EARLY ON AND PRIORITIZE WHAT MATTERS TO YOU MOST (FAMILY OUTINGS, XMAS CARDS, DECORATIONS, HOLIDAY EVENTS, “ME TIME”, ETC…)
• FOCUS ON ONE TASK AT A TIME (YOU’LL WORK MORE EFFICIENTLY AND GET THINGS DONE QUICKER)
• SET BOUNDARIES – BY SETTING LIMITS FOR YOURSELF (FAMILY TOO) CHOOSE HOW AND WHEN TO SAY NO AND ONLY OFFER WHAT YOU CAN. BE HONEST WITH YOURSELF. THIS CAN HELP CREATE MORE BALANCE, PEACE, AND HARMONY ANYTIME OF THE YEAR.
• ASK FOR HELP – ASK YOUR KIDS/SPOUSE/FRIENDS FOR A HELPFUL HAND (DON’T EVER HAVE TOO MUCH PRIDE TO ASK FOR SUPPORT). YOU CAN ALWAYS RECIPROCATE AT A LATER TIME.
• EXERCISE /GO TO THE SPA -CONNECT WITH YOUR BODY & SOUL (LISTEN TO YOUR BODY ABOUT WHAT YOU NEED…WALK, HIKE, YOGA, OR HIGH IMPACT CARDIO CLASS). THIS IS GOOD “ME” TIME AND YOU DESERVE IT!
• SET YOUR MIND FREE & LET THINGS GO – DON’T HOLD ON TO THINGS THAT ARE OUT OF YOUR CONTROL. MAKE THE BEST OF EVERY MOMENT YOU ARE BREATHING AND MAKE A CONSCIOUS EFFORT TO CHOOSE JOY. RELEASE YOUR WORRIES. IT DOESN’T HELP ANYONE. YOUR ADDED STRESS CAN THEN GET PASSED ON TO OTHERS AND WILL CREATE AN EVEN MORE STRESSFUL ENVIRONMENT BY THE ENERGY YOU GIVE OUT. AS DR. JILL BOLTE TAYLOR & NOW OPRAH SAYS “BE RESPONSIBLE FOR THE ENERGY YOU BRING INTO THIS ROOM”. JUST LET GO.
• BE GENTLE WITH YOURSELF – IF THE HOLIDAYS ARE A SENSITIVE TIME OF YEAR FOR YOU (IE. LOSS, PTSD, DEPRESSION, ANXIETY), THE MOST IMPORTANT PERSON TO CARE FOR IS YOU. BE HONEST WITH YOUR FAMILY ABOUT HOW YOU ARE FEELING SO THEY DON’T EXPECT MORE FROM YOU. IN ORDER TO HEAL THE WOUNDS YOU MUST HELP YOURSELF. WHAT ADVICE OR WORDS OF ENCOURAGEMENT WOULD YOU GIVE TO YOUR DEAREST FRIEND OR FAMILY MEMBER AND GIVE THAT TO YOURSELF. GET SUPPORT FROM A PROFESSIONAL. HAVING A NON-BIASED PERSON TO SPEAK TO MIGHT BE ALL YOU NEED TO CARRY YOU THROUGH.
• FIND GRATITUDE IN EVERYTHING (EVEN CHAOS OR STRESS CAN RESULT IN GOOD THINGS IF YOU CHOOSE TO BE GRATEFUL FOR THEM. STRESS CAN MOTIVATE US TO CHANGE OUR WAYS OR THOUGHTS AND CAN PUSH US TO DO BETTER AND BE BETTER.
THE KEY IS TO HAVE BALANCE IN ALL ASPECTS OF YOUR LIFE.
ESPECIALLY DURING THE HOLIDAYS.
HOW WILL YOU COPE WITH YOUR STRESS THIS HOLIDAY OR THE NEXT?
HOW WILL YOU CREATE MORE BALANCE FOR YOU AND YOUR FAMILY?
ABOUT DR. JILL BOLTE TAYLOR
Dr. Jill Bolte Taylor is a Harvard-trained and published neuroanatomist who experienced a severe hemorrhage in the left hemisphere of her brain in 1996. On the afternoon of this rare form of stroke (AVM), she could not walk, talk, read, write, or recall any of her life. It took eight years for Dr. Jill to completely recover all of her physical function and thinking ability. She is the author of the New York Times bestselling memoir My Stroke of Insight: A Brain Scientist’s Personal Journey (published in 2008 by Viking Penguin). In 2008, Dr. Jill gave a presentation at the TED Conference in Monterey, CA, which turned out to be the first TED talk to ever go viral through the internet. TED and Dr. Jill became world famous instantaneously and her TED talk is now the second most viewed TED talk of all time. This now famous 18-minute presentation catapulted her story into the public eye, and within six weeks of presenting that TED talk, Dr. Jill was chosen as one of TIME Magazine’s 100 Most Influential People in the World for 2008, she was the premiere guest on Oprah’s Soul Series web-cast, and her book My Stroke of Insight became a New York Times bestseller.
To find out more about Dr. Jill Bolte Taylor go to: http://www.drjilltaylor.com/about.html
