Three Tips for Surviving the Holidays

When you're in your twenties, the holiday season can feel like an episode of Survivor. You fear you'll be voted off the Island. Maybe it's the questions that get asked or maybe you miss your loved ones or perhaps you are just plain stressed. I've got three tips to surviving the holidays.

Remember the loved ones you've lost.

This time of year, loss weighs heavy on our minds. We can remember each and every person who is no longer there to eat, drink, and celebrate. My family and I inevitably spend time laughing and remembering our loved ones. We laugh about my grandfather. He was convinced everything was a money-making scheme. Giggling, we tell of my great-grandmother fighting us to let her climb all of the steps in the Currituck Lifehouse with a broken foot, and mostly blind. This year we are also going to be making our Aunt's famous, delicious nut roll. For years we have been afraid to make it because we did not want to ruin it or not have it live up to her skills. Last year, we bit the bullet and guess what? It was such a hit. The whole family raved over how good it was.

If you have to travel, don't freak out over delays.

There are travel details outside of your control. Stop stressing out! Traffic jams on the highway? You can't change that. Flight delays? Unless you have a commercial pilot license you can't change that either. All you do by freaking out is add more stress to your plate. Easier said than done, but I think it is important to put things into perspective. Plan as best you can, but in the end, you can only plan for so much.

Avoid the comparison game.

The Comparison Game sucks, please do not play it. I don't know what it is about the holidays, but I fall into comparing my life to family, friends, and acquaintances. Seeing family and answering countless questions can begin these comparisons. So often, I find myself lacking after those questions. "Are you dating anyone?" "How's work?" "When are you going to settle down?" Typically, the questions come from a place of love. Your family is genuinely interested in your life. Remember that, because it could help stop you from falling into the comparison hole. The problem arises when you start hearing other people's answers to the same questions. When you start hearing about your younger cousin who has a great job, got married earlier in the year, and is 4 months pregnant, it gets really easy to say, "What is wrong with me?" Nothing is wrong with you. Every single person is on their own path. These paths are like your fingerprints: every person’s path is different.

Finally, if all else fails, drink more alcohol.