Over the last few years I’ve leaned on four key superpowers that have left me virtually unscathed with all the holiday pressure.
Today, I’m passing them along to you in the hopes that adopting one or more will give you the energy, capacity, and grace to roll into 2022 with a more grounded, calm, and refreshed energy.

My superpower: Meditation
As we roll through the holidays, many of us can feel the stress creeping up into neck and shoulders. Tightening in the jaw. Headaches and fatigue.
All the shopping, the last-minute rush to fit all your meetings into short work weeks, the family gatherings and conversations, the kids out of school, the houseguests… it’s a LOT. This season can do a serious number on your mental and physical health if you aren’t careful.

That is why I intentionally carve out time in the morning and evening to meditate. Even if it is just 5 minutes each time.

My meditation teacher Davidji calls these times RPM and RAW.

RPM stands for RISE, PEE, & MEDITATE.
If you ritualize your morning meditation, it will more likely become a habit and set you up with more clam, intention and ease throughout your day.

RAW stands for RIGHT AFTER WORK.
This meditation is important so that you can release anything you have been holding on to throughout the day. It sets you up to be fully present and mindful with the ones that you love. Whether that be yourself, your fur kids, or your human family.

These two meditations are like setting the table and washing the dishes. Morning meditation is like setting up your day with beauty, calm, and a plan. The evening meditation is like washing the dishes. You clean up all the accumulated gunk from the day. If you didn’t wash your dishes each day you would end up with a huge stinking mess.
The two tasks are totally different, and they both serve a crucial part of your day. Just like the morning and evening meditations. But they don’t just magically happen. You have to make sure that you carve out the time, commit and then ritualize these meditations. Prioritizing these meditation ‘bookends’ of my day has totally transformed my life. Believe me, as the holidays hit, you are going to love the connection to your inner stillness & silence that meditation brings.

My superpower: Preserving sleep

It can be tempting to burn the candle at both ends over the holidays. You want to stay up late wrapping gifts, baking or cooking, and visiting with family after the kids go down, but the little turds are waking up at 6 AM no matter what time you go to bed. If my sleep goes, the rest of my life quickly follows—cue the sugar cravings, crankiness, and lethargy. So even if it means saying "sayonara" to a house full of guests, I’m hitting the sack at my usual bedtime. (And feel free to sleep until you damn well please, even if your parents are early risers).

There’s another added benefit here—it guarantees you and your guests a little alone time each day, which is likely to be very appreciated by all. Return to your room a touch early to read and wind down, leave your guests with coffee instructions and a few good magazines for the morning, and everyone gets some time to recharge.

My superpower: Movement

Something else I’ve incorporated into every holiday season is movement—every day, in some capacity. Some days, it means leaving my guests to hit the gym nice and early. Other days, it means getting my dogs out for a long walk or a few shorter walks throughout the day. Sometimes I will take off for an hour to hike, we have a snowball fight, or we all bundle up to go sledding. Getting everyone outside and moving, especially taking walks after a meal, is a great family bonding activity and helps you get a LITERAL breath of fresh air if the house starts to feel claustrophobic.

Another bonus—this is yet another opportunity to get some alone time during a busy season. (Can you tell I value my alone time?)
And if you say, "I’m taking the dog for a walk" and your dad offers to join you, it’s okay to say, "Thanks, but I’m actually looking forward to a few minutes of alone time." It’s called boundaries.

My superpower: Boundaries

Finally, these have become so important to me the last few years—setting boundaries around your own limits this season is good for your health, happiness, and relationships. It’s tempting to let everyone just do what they want because it’s the holidays, you don’t see them often, and who wants to rock the boat? But if just thinking about some of your relatives’ behaviors are making you clench your jaw right now, imagine what a few clear, kind boundaries could do to transform those few days you have together?

Practice clear, kind language. Remember boundaries are about YOUR limits (what you will and will not tolerate). Believe that these boundaries will make your time together better for ALL of you, where nobody is resentful, irritated or feeling taken advantage of.
Remind yourself that you are a grown adult with agency and car keys and a big, full LIFE, in case childhood patterns start rearing their head.

And remember practice makes perfect, so even if you don’t nail them all this holiday season, you’ve at least laid the groundwork for holidays to come.

Wishing you nothing but health, happiness, and peace this holiday season.