Give Yourself a Great Holiday Gift: Reduce Stress

Martin's Point Health Care provides stress-busting suggestions for the holiday season

If you're like most people, the hustle-bustle of the holidays may often leave you frazzled, frustrated and overwhelmed. Do yourself a favor this year: Reduce the stress.

"Finding healthy ways to ease stress, especially throughout the holiday season, is a gift to yourself - and your loved ones," said John Vogt, practice medical director at Martin's Point Health Care, a comprehensive primary care practice group with four clinics in Maine and New Hampshire. "The benefits will extend far beyond the holidays."

Martin's Point Health Care has compiled a list of suggestions to help keep stress levels in check as the traditional holiday rush gets under way:

• Eat Right. A healthy diet is important any time of year, but perhaps even more so during the holidays, when an assortment of treats, sweets and high-fat foods are all too tempting. Instead, focus on healthy alternatives such as fruits, vegetables and lean meats, and make sure you drink plenty of water, which helps curb appetite. In addition, avoid alcohol - it's a depressant loaded with calories.

• Exercise. Regular exercise is always a priority, even during hectic times like the holiday season. Studies, in fact, have shown that exercise reduces stress. At a minimum, allow yourself 20 minutes of brisk activity three days a week, whether it's walking, running, swimming, cross-country skiing, weight training or aerobics.

• Rest Up. As we all know too well, getting enough sleep seems to be even harder during the holidays. Not enough rest, however, feeds stress, and can leave you feeling grumpy, unfocused or overwhelmed. The amount of sleep a person needs varies, but a good target is seven to eight hours. If going to bed a little earlier or sleeping a bit later a few times a week isn't an option, try finding time during the day for a quick nap.

• Get Real. Stress often is caused by the void between the way we think the holiday season ought to be and the way life really is. Letting go of the Leave It to Beaver images of families and relationships during the holidays can help ease feelings of disappointment, anxiety or anger. Equally important, accept that you can't control the behavior and attitudes of the people around you - even if they're your relatives.

• Make a List. If it feels sometimes like there isn't enough time to do everything, accept that there probably isn't enough time. Decide what tasks are most important and focus on them. If possible, delegate some of the cooking, cleaning, shopping and decorating to other members of your household.

• Take it Easy. One of the sources of stress during the holidays is shopping for gifts in a crowded mall or having to wait in a long line. Whenever possible, avoid the crowd by shopping for presents via mail-order catalogs or the Internet - and then use the hours you save to do something else.

• Bank on a Budget. Decide in advance on your budget, and stick to it. Avoiding a backlog of bills and maxed-out credit cards can do wonders to keep stress in check.

• Remember What's Important. Despite the barrage of commercialism in the media throughout the holidays, remind yourself that the holiday season isn't about armfuls of presents and keeping up with the neighbors. It's about family, friends and faith.

The Martin's Point Health Education Center offers a variety of resource materials, such as publications and videos, and classes that focus on a host of topics, ranging from stress reduction and smoking cessation to disease management.

Established in 1981, Martin's Point is a not-for-profit health care provider with facilities in Portland, Brunswick and Windham, Maine, and in Portsmouth, N.H. Martin's Point has a staff of more than 350 health care professionals and serves 54,000 patients - including military retirees and dependents of active military personnel - under all major health plans. Martin's Point serves patients in the areas of family practice, internal medicine, pediatrics, surgery, radiology, cardiology, mammography, and other fields.

For additional information on Martin's Point Health Care, visit online at www.martinspoint.org.

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RESOURCES: REDUCING STRESS

An array of information about reducing stress is available on the Internet and from books and magazines. Here's a sampling:

On the Internet
• StopStress.com (www.stopstress.com)
• "Preventing Holiday Blues," the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
(http://www.cdc.gov/safeusa/blues.htm)
• Mental Health: The Cornerstone of Health (http://www.mentalhealth.org/cornerstone/)

The Martin's Point Health Education Center at 331 Veranda St. in Portland has a resource library featuring an array of books, videos and audiocassettes available for check out to the general public. Information about reducing stress includes:

Books
• "Stress, Diet, and Your Heart"
• "Stress for Success"
• "The Relaxation and Stress Reduction Workbook"

Videos
• "Stress and Anxiety"
• "The Joy and Stress"
• "Saving for Stress"
• "A Day Away from Stress"

Audios
• "Just Relax"
• "Refreshing Journeys - Mini Meditations"


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