Speaker 1: Welcome back. The holidays aren’t always happy for everyone. The season can often trigger memories of loss and sadness, and even stress, but there are ways to manage the Holiday Blues and hear some suggestions. Is Dr. Erica Steele from Holistic Family Practice in Virginia Beach, Dr. Steele, welcome.
Speaker 2: Oh, thank you so much for having me.
Speaker 1: Absolutely. Okay. So why do people struggle with the holiday blues? There are a bunch of reasons.
Speaker 2: There are, and especially this year has been incredibly unique, right? Because we have the pandemic, people are coming out of that. There’s pandemic fatigue. People have definitely experienced the loss of loved ones. So this year may be a little different for many of them.
Speaker 1: I can see that even teenagers at my house are going through it. What are some of the symptoms that the people out there and myself should be looking for?
Speaker 2: So I need to be more motivated by apathy and listlessness. I don’t wanna do anything. I don’t wanna get off the couch. Often, people don’t realize they’re depressed, right? They don’t realize that they’re not feeling well. So often, someone outside themselves must say, Hey, are you feeling okay? How are you doing? You’re not like you. Just to clue that in and say, being self-aware in terms of how a person’s feeling and what a person’s thinking.
Speaker 1: So what are some ideas, Erica, that you can give us that people can do to get through those holiday blues?
Speaker 2: So my first tip is not to overschedule. So often we are given, we’ve got holiday party, we have this to go to, that to go to, and all that is really exciting and fun. But sometimes, we also need to schedule time for ourselves, right? April included, and so not. So overscheduling is essential and necessary overall, as well as excessive sugar and alcohol. We know that there’s a lot of alcohol at many different events, pastries, and sugary things. All those things can impact the neurotransmitters in the brain, which are the chemicals in your brain.
And so that regulates serotonin, your happy hormones, and dopamine responses. So those are your motivators. So when you go through a lot of sugar, when you’re drinking and eating, it can send you through this yo-yo cycle up. And. The other thing I would mention is setting a healthy boundary, right?
No means no. If you don’t feel like going out, you can say, What? Not tonight. Not today. Especially with family members and even if you don’t feel comfortable, let’s say, hugging a particular family member or. Being with certain people. I know there are definitely conversations around vaccinations, et cetera.
No means no. If you don’t feel like going out, you can say, What? Not tonight. Not today. Especially with family members and even if you don’t feel comfortable, let’s say, hugging a particular family member or. Being with certain people. I know there are definitely conversations around vaccinations, et cetera.
If you don’t feel comfortable with certain people around you for whatever reason, it’s always important to say, not right now in a loving way. And, of course, our movement and exercise, getting signals into the body, can help endorphins and help you feel better overall. And lastly, even if you don’t feel great about it.
Journaling helps you get it all out right in the journal. Just open the page and vomit all over it. Then, say whatever you need to say, even if you don’t feel comfortable sharing that with others.
Speaker 1: Oh, I call that an emotional vomit. Okay. You got ta promote your upcoming online course. Tell me about it. It’s about 30 days of emotion.
Speaker 2: Yeah. I just continue to see in my practice that people are really not emotionally intelligent, and they don’t know what to do with emotions, right? And that’s for women and also men too. And so I designed a course delivered through an app every day you get a tip. And tricks to help you manage your emotions, especially as we enter the new year. Oh,
Speaker 1: that is so good. Thank you so much for those tips. It’ll get many people through the holidays, and happy holidays to you.
Speaker 2: Awesome. Same to you. Take care.
Speaker 1: You too.
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