The Christmas period is upon us and with it comes added stress. Buying Christmas presents, deciding on how much to spend, thinking about what a person would want for Christmas, getting stuck in traffic, organizing parties all add stress which we could do without.

Our social calendar fills up, too many meals and parties, sometimes more than one on the same day and of course the annual Christmas visits to family members you only see once or twice a year. This might also mean that the time usually used for exercise may be taken up.
How can one cope better with the increase of activities and thus stress as well as the increase of unhealthy food, alcohol, expenses and late nights?

Social Ways to Reduce Christmas Stress
1. Share your worries with friends.
2. Prioritize invitations - go to the ones you know you will enjoy most.
3. Make a brief appearance at parties and give yourself a time limit.
4. Refuse to compare your appearance, lifestyle or possessions to those of other people.

Physical Ways to Reduce Stress
1. Get a massage.
2. Do some exercise, ideally something you enjoy, even if it's only playing hide and seek with the kids.
3. Take a hot bubble bath.
4. Stop eating before you're full.
5. Get enough sleep.
6. Reduce your caffeine intake.
7. Take your vitamins and supplements.
8. Drinks lots of water, especially if you have been drinking alcohol.
9. Get a pedicure as you'll probably be standing in uncomfortable shoes quite a lot during the Christmas period.
10. Spend time with people you love.

Mental and Emotional ways to Reduce Stress
1. Make time to nap, read, and relax.
2. Play your favorite board games or watch your favorite TV shows.
3. Choose your priorities.
4. Have realistic expectations.
5. Have fun and laugh!
6. Stay in touch with your emotions.
7. Cry, scream, or punch the pillow when you need to.
8. Stop to take a deep breath.
9. Be alone for a few hours.
10. Enjoy the Christmas traditions.
11. Let yourself grieve if you've recently lost someone you love.
12. Adjust your perspective to include peace, compassion, and forgiveness. Christmas is a time for that.

Practical and Creative ways to Reduce Stress
1. Use lists and calendars to stay organized
2. Set decorating goals.
3. Delegate chores.
4. Cook the turkey; let guests bring the rest.
5. Be flexible with timing, food, and schedules.
6. Rent DVDs to keep people occupied.
7. Shop over the Internet to avoid crowds and shop early.
8. Give yourself extra time to do things.
9. Stick to your financial budget.
10. Avoid impulse buying.
11. Paint or draw.
12. Visit a museum.
13. Go to a movie in the middle of the day by yourself.
14. Listen to music that relaxes and/or energizes you.
15. Go for a drive or walk in the country.
16. Write a blog or journal.

Adele Muscat has been practicing as a Sport and Exercise Psychologist for the past 10 years. She achieved a Bachelor in Psychology degree from the University of Malta and went on to specialize in Sport and Exercise Science/Sport Psychology at the Manchester Metropolitan University.

Adele is the Sports Co-ordinator at MCAST where she is responsible for organizing sport and exercise activities for the students and staff as well as managing the facilities. She also lectures both at MCAST as well as at The University of Malta, Department of Psychology and The Institute for Sport. She is currently a Director at the Malta Olympic Committee and is also the Sport Psychologist working with Malta's top athletes helping to prepare them mentally for competition. She has worked with a number of sports federations, clubs and nurseries and has formed part of the Maltese contingent at The Small Nations Games, Mediterranean Games, Commonwealth Games and Olympic Games. Adele is a very active individual herself and practices sailing, kayaking, running, cycling and trekking on a regular basis.