Yet again the silly season is upon us and, while Christmas can be one of the most fun times of the year, it can also be one of the most stressful, so do a little preparation now to make sure you don’t get overwhelmed later.
Firstly give your immunity a little boost, the last thing you need is to be fighting coughs, colds and seasonal sniffles when you should be making Yuletime merry. Take extra vitamin C and extra vitamin D (which can help to keep your moods balanced as well as fighting viruses!). Try some immune boosting botanicals. Echinacea (provided you don’t have any autoimmune issues), Elderberry and Olive Leaf are all allies. Take a high potency probiotic everyday for a threefold benefit, better digestion, better mood balance and stronger immunity.

Deal with stress before it becomes a problem. Take a good B vitamin with high B5 levels, Vitamin B5 (aka ‘the stress vitamin’) helps to reduce cortisol levels in the body. Cortisol is the hormone produced by the adrenal gland which keeps us in a highly alert, fight or flight state. Take magnesium which, in addition to having numerous other benefits, can keep us stay relaxed during the day and get a better night’s sleep. Various stress busting botanicals can be taken as tablets or capsules, tinctures or teas. Valerian, lime flower, lemon balm, chamomile and passionflower all come to mind.
Lastly take a step back from the commercial aspects of the season if they’re the cause of anxiety for you. With climate change happening all around us perhaps it’s time for us all to see just how consumerism can be bad for the planet. Remember you can show the people that matter to you just how much you care for them without going to great expense in the process. Simple and inexpensive (recycled?) but thoughtful gifts (maybe with an emphasis on how we can positively impact the environment) can mean the world (pun intended!) to your loved ones too.