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Christmas break. Winter break. Chinese New Year break.
All these breaks are almost back-to-back. Some say that it is a good thing as they will finally have some time to spend with their family and relax from all the stressful work they have.
Others may see it as a burden (kind of) – that they have to be with their family for so much time consecutively over the holidays and the purpose of relaxation and indulging in all the hobbies and activities is slowly gone.
Well, we all have been there at some point with our family, I guess, and, well, in those moments, we just need a few tips on what we can do instead, don’t we?
Directly telling your family that you need to take a break from all the overwhelming conversations and activities is the best first step towards relieving yourself from all the stress you are receiving from the family time.
As you let your family members know that you need to spend some more time away from them and more with yourself and have them respect that as a personal choice of yours, you will be emboldened and have the freedom to do whatever you want to do with the “me time” that you have finally obtained.
Spend that time to do whatever interests you, or perhaps read some books if you are feeling lost in what you can do. My recommendation is to use the time to try out a new morning or evening routine – maybe your experimentation with your new routine will be the start of a more productive lifestyle.
This may sound cliché, but taking a walk is probably one of the best activities that you can do by yourself. It allows you to be present with the things surrounding you – the buildings, the nature, the small animals that may be around you or up in the sky. Perhaps there was a plane that flew by, but you didn’t notice it.
Taking a walk and giving yourself time to connect with the world is a great way to reset your mind and body. It may even give you time to think and decide whether you should spend more time with your family or with yourself.
As I listened to the Andrew Huberman podcast, I learned that doing exercises that feature objects moving past you while you are moving forward is beneficial for reducing anxiety and helps you to maintain high energy throughout the day. Taking a walk or run is definitely in that category of exercises, so if you struggle with anxiety or stress, this would probably help you relieve that.
When walking, you can also look up at the ceiling/sky a few times to reduce anxiety, according to Huberman, perhaps due to the fact that the color blue is proven to have a psychological feeling of relieving stress.
Setting a small goal at the start of the holiday and trying to accomplish it by yourself over a period of time is a great way to find meaning in spending time with yourself.
For me, it has been learning Cantonese, as I have moved to Zhuhai, and everyone here thinks that you know Cantonese by default. I have kept my streak on Duolingo for 19 days now (probably a couple of days more by the time this article is published), and even though it is just a five-minute practice every day, I still feel that at the end of the holiday all the small but consistent steps that I have taken will pay off and become something I can use in my daily life.
Another small goal that I have set for myself during this time is to finish reading the first Dune book (or maybe more, depending on my progress), and I found it absolutely fascinating. The feeling of accomplishment when looking at the thickness of the pages I have finished reading for the past half-month or so is super satisfying and has encouraged me to keep on going.
So why not set yourself a small goal like those and start working towards them when you have some time away from family affairs?
Images: Pexels
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