Beyond Intentions: Your Toolkit for a Resilient Holiday Season
The end of the year often brings a mix of holiday cheer and a quiet sense of dread. The long, dark days can sap your energy, and the pressure of the holidays can leave you feeling drained. It’s easy to feel like you’re just trying to survive until January 1st, when you can hit the invisible “reset” button and tell yourself that next year will be better.
But what if you didn’t have to wait for a new year to “fix” everything? What if you could start building your resilience right now, creating a toolkit to help you not only survive the winter but thrive in the new year? This blog post is about setting intentions for your well-being and preparing yourself to face the day when the day wants to take you out, both emotionally and physically.
Understanding the Winter Blues
First, let’s acknowledge a simple truth: the winter blues are real. The science is clear—less sunlight can affect your mood and energy levels, sometimes leading to a seasonal slump. It’s a natural human response, so if you’re feeling a little more tired or less motivated, please know you’re not alone. The goal isn’t to pretend these feelings don’t exist, but to have a plan for how to handle them.
Some practices to consider include:
- Hygge: Intentionally creating an atmosphere of warmth, comfort, and coziness within your home to enjoy life and the people you love. Embrace the darkness of winter by creating your own light.
- Sun lamp: Also known as therapy light boxes these lamps mimic the sunlight to regulate your body’s circadian rhythm to ease the effects of anxiety and depression.
- Winter Hobby or Activities: Each season offers a variety of outdoor activities. If you like winter then your options aren’t as limited assuming you enjoy the cold and snow. But if you crave warmth and hibernating, consider an indoor hobby that you enjoy and only do in the winter. It will give you something to look forward to because it becomes more of a sacred activity instead of routine.
- Reading: Cracking open a good book is great anytime of the year, but winter lends itself well to curling up with a blanket and reading a captivating story. Another approach would be to use this time to take a class or do your own research on a topic you are interested in learning more about.
- Schedule a Project: Clean out your closets, paint a room, reorganize your cabinets, update your important files, etc. The idea is to feel productive while you are stuck indoors waiting for the warm weather to return. And when it does, you won’t feel guilty about neglecting household chores.
The Power of Positive Intentions
Before you start writing a list of expectations, let’s try something different. Instead of a long list of things you “should” do, choose a single word or phrase as your intention for the holiday season. This simple shift can be a powerful guide for your actions and thoughts.
- Patience: When holiday stress starts to boil over, this word can remind you to take a breath and respond with grace.
- Presence: During a family gathering, this word can pull you away from your phone and into the moment.
- Growth: In a tough moment, this word can help you see a challenge not as a setback, but as an opportunity to learn.
Your word will act as an anchor, helping you stay grounded when the day feels overwhelming. If this practice works for you, it can also help you during other challenging periods throughout the year not just during the holidays or family gatherings.
Planning for Emotional and Spiritual Goals
We plan for meetings and doctor’s appointments, so why not plan for our well-being? As you look toward 2026, think about what you want to nurture in your emotional and spiritual life right now, so that you can ease into the new year with an arsenal of actions, thoughts, and ideas that already work for you.
- Schedule “Me Time”: Put it on your calendar, just like any other important appointment. Even 15 minutes of quiet time to read, meditate, or simply sit with a cup of tea can make a world of difference.
- Start a Journal: It’s one of the most powerful tools for shifting your perspective. End each day by writing down three things you’re grateful for—no matter how small. Then add three things that challenged or frustrated you. Compare the two by feeling your feelings about all of them to determine if you just needed to vent or if there is a lesson of growth buried beneath the struggle.
- Find Your Practice: Whether it’s journaling, prayer, meditation, a hobby, talking to a friend, or spending time in nature, find a spiritual practice that grounds you. Make a plan to engage with it regularly, and don’t be afraid to experiment.
Building Your Energy and Stamina
When you feel emotionally and spiritually drained, your physical energy often follows. The key is to start with small, manageable actions that build momentum.
- Move Your Body: You don’t have to go to the gym for an hour. A 15-minute walk, a gentle stretching session, or dancing around your living room can help release endorphins and improve your mood.
- Hydrate and Fuel: It’s easy to forget to drink water or eat nourishing foods during the holiday rush. Pay attention to what your body needs. A glass of water can sometimes do more for your energy than another cup of coffee.
- Protect Your Sleep: Our bodies do their most important repair work while we sleep. Prioritize getting enough rest and create a calming bedtime routine to help you wind down. This means avoiding screen time on your TV, phone, or computer for at least an hour before bed.
- Talk it Out: Suppressing your feelings is not healthy! Negative energy needs to move through your body and out or it will slowly eat away at your mind, body, and spirit. Find a trusted friend or counselor to process and purge your thoughts and feelings. Women are often guilty of people pleasing and putting their own needs last to ensure everyone else is okay. YOU deserve to be okay too, so stop that! If you need to display a mantra or affirmation to remind yourself of this, then by all means do it! Bathroom mirrors or a picture on your phone works great because you will see it several times throughout the day.
You have the power to face the coming months feeling more prepared and resilient. By building this toolkit now, you’re not just hoping for a better 2026—you’re actively creating it.
