Your Guide to a Stress-Free Christmas: How To Survive and Enjoy the Holidays

To avoid stress and anxiety during the Christmas season, explore our preparation tricks, gift-giving recommendations, and dinner ideas.

Make a plan

Here's the #1 recommendation for hassle-free Christmas preparation: start early and have a plan. If you start decorating, shopping for gifts, cleaning, and making a schedule a couple of weeks before the big day, you’ll probably end up feeling wiped out when the holidays come.

Start Christmas preparations in October or early November. Create a holiday budget, look up for early bird deals, and map out a holiday calendar. If you plan to travel on holidays, start researching and booking in late summer.

Having a plan helps stay calm and keep everything under control, which will reduce your anxiety. Write the to-do list and cross out things you’ve done. Use our ultimate Christmas preparation checklist to stay on top of everything.

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Simplify Christmas cooking

Cooking a festive dinner can be overwhelming, especially if your extended family is staying over or you host a large party. To enjoy a stress-free dinner and a delicious meal, follow these recommendations:

1. Balance between old and new recipes. If you want to cook something new for a festive dinner, make 2-3 new dishes. Don't overhaul the menu with untested recipes. If something doesn’t go as planned, you’ll have other tried-and-true dishes at the table.

2. Delegate. By engaging the entire family, you’ll cook everything faster, plus it is a great family bonding activity. Elementary school kids can arrange snacks on plates, and middle-schoolers can chop vegetables or mix ingredients.
3. Prepare in advance. Peel and chop vegetables, make sauces, and cook dishes that can be frozen ahead of time.
4. Organize a potluck. If cooking for everyone sounds too exhausting, don’t push yourself. Suggest that everyone brings one dish and host a themed potluck dinner.
5. Order a takeaway. Ordering a festive meal from a local restaurant or a supermarket is also a great alternative. If you feel exhausted because of too many things to do, buying ready dishes can be a lifesaver.

Use an online organizer for Secret Santa

Secret Santa or White Elephant is a heartwarming tradition in many families and groups of friends. Yet, planning and assigning names can be stressful, especially for a larger group. People can forget whose name they’ve drawn, or puzzle over buying a perfect gift.

With the MySanta app, you can organize a gift exchange in minutes and keep the whole process stress-free. Sign up, create a game, and invite players via link or QR code. Each participant shares their gift ideas and what not to give them, thus minimizing bad gifts. And the best part is that everything is recorded – the organizer can see who bought a gift and who hasn’t, and send a reminder.

How to keep your White Elephant or Secret Santa exchange stress-free?

1. Set gift budget. Exchanging presents of the same value keeps the game equal and helps minimize hurt feelings (for example, when one player gets a much cheaper gift than others).
2. Use wishlists. In the MySanta app, players can add items from online stores to the wishlist, and the Santa can buy a specific item the recipient will like for sure.
3. Explain the rules to everyone. Some participants might not be aware of the rules. To avoid spoiling the game, send these Secret Santa rules or White Elephant game rules to them.
4. Have a few spare gifts at hand. In case someone forgets to bring the gift to the party or drops out right before the holiday, prepare a few small but nice gifts so that nobody leaves empty-handed.

Try our MySanta app

You can create wishlists, add exclusions, and communicate with your gifree secretly. Moreover, there is an option to track gifts and ensure that everyone buys a present on time.

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Shop for gifts with ease

Buying gifts is another common stressor for most people, especially for last-minute shoppers. Presents also take the biggest share in the holiday expenses – on average, Americans allocate approximately $641 for Christmas gifts.

Here are some strategies to buy good presents your loved ones will appreciate, minimize pressure, and avoid overspending:

1. Shop early. It sounds trivial, but you can save money and minimize stress if you buy early. Last-minute shopping hurts your budget and adds up to your mental strain. Plan to buy all gifts two weeks before Christmas – not only will you save, but also enter the holiday season more relaxed as you won’t need to worry about gifts.
2. Create wishlists. Ask your family and friends to make wishlists, and buy something from the list. It minimizes the guessing game for you, and the recipient will surely be happy with the gift.
3. Give experiences. If your friend or family member wanted to go to spa or try some new creative activity, give them a certificate. Such gifts create memories and spark positive emotions.
4. Consider gift cards and subscriptions. Some believe that gifts cards are impersonal. Yet, letting your giftee choose something they want is much more personal than giving something they probably won’t use.

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Plan games and activities for kids

Planning fun activities and games for children helps kids busy and entertained, reducing the dreaded "I'm bored!" refrain and allowing you to have some peaceful time for yourself. Think beyond screen time – balance between board games, crafts, and outdoors activities.

Ideas of Christmas activities for kids

1. Outdoor activities. Visit a Christmas tree farm together, stroll around your neighborhood to see the lights, or head to a local Christmas market to skate, try gingerbread and roasted chestnuts, and take photos.
2. Play in the snow. Make a snowman, start a snowball fight, and encourage the little ones to make snow angels. Getting some fresh air boosts the mood, and active games helps kids develop motor skills.
3. Cook together. Engage the little ones in cooking – kids love being helpful, plus you can teach them some essential skills. Make Christmas cookies, decorate the gingerbread house, or ask them to assist with more complex dishes.
4. Plan indoors activities. Set up a craft station to make edible garlands and festive wreaths. Plan a board game night and opt for Christmas-themed games. Organize a Pictionary, charades, or holiday trivia as a screen-free activity.
5. Engage kids in charity. Ask your kids to donate old books, clothes, and toys, or volunteer in food banks together.

Schedule time for yourself

Holiday preparations are full of hustle and bustle, and we often forget to give ourselves a well-deserved rest and recharge batteries. Christmas is the perfect time to reflect on your life, relax after meeting year-end goals at work, and enjoy quality time with your loved ones. Just like you plan grocery shopping and dinner with your spouse’s parents, add some blocks of me-time to your diary.

5 ideas to recharge batteries and relieve holiday stress

1. Plan a distraction-free hour. Set aside all electronic devices and turn off notifications for 1 hour every day, ideally before the bedtime. Don’t plan anything special. Have your favorite beverage, spend time with the family, and do whatever comes to your mind.
2. Have a 15-minute de-stress walk. Even if it's just around the block, a short walk outdoors can clear your head and boost your mood. Fresh air and a change of scenery can work wonders.
3. Read a chapter of a light-hearted book. Read a good fiction book before going to sleep or during the lunch break. Escape into a fictional world for a few minutes to take your mind off stress.
4. Plan a small act of kindness. Paying for someone’s coffee, helping an elderly neighbor, or sending a heartwarming message to a coworker can give you a sense of purpose and lighten up your day.
5. Treat yourself to spa or massage. Schedule a visit to a local spa to treat yourself to sauna, aromatherapy, facials, or massage. These procedures will relax your muscle tension, thus minimizing stress, improving your sleep, and boosting overall well-being.

Tips to minimize stress and anxiety this holiday season

Decide what matters to you most.

It’s next to impossible to make time for everything during the holiday season. Before you start booking appointments and activities, ask yourself: “What matters to me most this Christmas?” If you want more family time, don’t accept too many invitations to social events and gatherings.

Learn to say no.

After you’ve decided what you’d like to do this Christmas, don’t be ashamed to say “no” to activities and invitations that don’t align with your priorities.

Let go of perfection.

We all want a picture-like Christmas with fun atmosphere, enjoyable activities, and family bonding. Yet, things are rarely perfect. Set realistic expectations and accept that something might not go as planned, and it’s perfectly fine. Such an approach will save your nerves and relieve stress.

Avoid conflicts.

If some of your guests or extended family don’t like each other, talk to them separately and encourage them to keep the holiday light-hearted and avoid fights. Ask everyone to avoid certain topics if they cause fights and heated discussions.

Have a relaxed schedule.

Christmas season is full of events, but overbooking your schedule can cause excessive stress. Don’t aim to be busy every minute. Have a loose schedule in case you plan something spontaneously with the family or friends, or just want to relax and watch your comfort movie.

Don’t compare.

Comparing yourself to others during holidays causes anxiety. You might think that you don’t have much fun as others, don’t visit as much events, and so on. Don’t let these thoughts ruin your Christmas. Focus on having a joyful time with your loved ones, not on comparison.

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