Many of us struggle through the holidays. We deal with grumpy checkout girls, rude customers, arrogant in-laws, and boisterous kids. All of our personal time and space is invaded. Our routines and schedules are broken to allow for family time, shopping, and holiday parties.

Others are lonely during the holidays. They celebrate them alone and in isolation. They experience loneliness and depression. Some of us experience anxiety over all of the things that we must fit in, the lack of resources we have, and our desire to make everything perfect. We forget to delegate to others, and we remember special people in our lives who have already passed on. We remember our old traditions, and we anticipate future holidays with our loves ones.

Every aspect of the holidays triggers some type of positive or negative emotion. With the wide range of emotions, the holidays often elicit an increase in stress for us. Our hearts race along with our minds. The stress hormone cortisol increases in our bodies, setting off a chain reaction of negative results. We start to get sick. We become anxious. We have trouble sleeping. It causes fatigue in our bodies.

Some of the memories and experiences that are dealt with through the holidays can even cause a disorder called Complex PTSD or Developmental Trauma Disorder. People who have sensitive genes or sensitive temperaments can experience negative emotions during an experience that can traumatize them for life if they do not find ways to de-stress and reprocess the event. Some people only consider trauma to be things like home invasions and war. But the truth is that trauma can be any event where a person feels helpless, out of control, humiliated, or shamed.

This audiobook seeks to provide you with many different ways that you can de-stress after the holidays. I hope that these can help you process your stress and find a better place mentally and emotionally.