For the mama with post-holiday blues

If you’re like me, the month of December has been an absolute whirlwind of Christmas programs, cookie exchanges, shopping, parties, wrapping gifts, packages, sleep-deprivation, school parties, teacher gifts, hyper kids with too much sugar, work demands, crazy mornings getting kids out the door, stressed husbands and more.

You’re coming down from the holiday high, and it’s not just your wacky blood sugar from too many chocolate peanut butter buckeyes, sweets and drinks. You’re feeling low. You’re unsure of how to transition to this next month or this year for that matter. 2020 is here, and entering a new year can feel intimidating.

This week, your phone isn’t sending you hundreds of notifications, and you’re not hearing simultaneous chimes and dings. Your to-do list is much shorter (thankfully). Your calendar is clear. Your money is spent, and you’re thinking, what’s next?

Besides sibling rivalry on winter break, your heart feels still. Your home is too. You’re thinking about packing up your Christmas decor and your beautiful tree. But you’re not ready to take down the lights and look at the bare walls just yet.

Then comes those dreadful post-holiday blues. They come upon you in an instant, and you’re thinking, where in the world did the time go? How is Christmas over?

Well, I’m certainly not a doctor, psychiatrist or expert, but I am a mom juggling four strong-willed kids, marriage, passions, occasional work and finding my way too in 2020. I don’t have it figured out, but I’m attempting to implement a few practical ways on winter break, and I hope they’ll be helpful for you, too.

1. Give yourself grace. You’ve just been steaming along at full, maximum speed. The train is slowing down and ready for a complete stop. Allow it to do so. You can’t go full speed forever. Embrace this time of rest and slowness. Don’t despise it. Your body will thank you later. Your kids and husband might too!

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