As a child the holiday season was my favorite time of year. Now, as an adult they have lost some of their magic due to the stress of day to day responsibilities that bury the gifts of this season for many of us in anxiety and depression.
Some of the anxieties and depression experienced are a result of thoughts about our pasts which we can not change, the lack of what we cannot give and the worries of the future.
This holiday season I would like to encourage you to practice a moment of mindfulness each day. When we are mindful we are in the present with our thoughts as well as with our physical self. Mindfulness allows us to notice what we are thinking and how those thoughts are affecting our emotions.
When we practice mindfulness we are giving a gift to ourselves, Allowing some time for self care and inner peace. It is important to become aware of our thoughts, because where our thoughts go our feelings follow.
If we focus on the past we can get stuck in the memories that remind us of what we’ve lost. If we focus on the future we lose site of what we have now. By opening the gift of the present we allow ourselves to experience this holiday season in a way that brings us more joy.
Wishing you and yours the best this season,
Monica