The Season of Cheer, Chaos and Coping

The season arrives with twinkling lights, cinnamon-scented optimism and a to-do list that seems to multiply faster than peppermint bark at a cookie swap. It’s a paradox of sparkle and strain. As you juggle year-end deadlines, family dynamics, travel plans and the stealthy Elf on the Shelf covert-ops mission at 11:58 p.m., your nervous system is quietly whispering, “Perhaps… we breathe?”

“People often feel like they’re supposed to be their most cheerful selves this time of year, even when life is incredibly demanding,” says Laura Sullivan, Therapist at Modern Minds. “That pressure to be ‘on’ can actually increase stress, not reduce it.”

Holiday stress wears many costumes. For parents, it’s the nightly elf relocation plotline worthy of a heist movie. For college students, it’s the finals-week fog where time and space fold into one long caffeine-fueled continuum. For caregivers, it’s the emotional marathon of tending to others while trying to stay intact yourself. And for travelers… well, airport lines that appear to stretch into the next geological era.

Let’s name it: this time of year can feel like a snow globe someone keeps shaking.

The Stress Response: Your Inner Alarm Bell

Stress isn’t the villain; it’s the messenger. Your body’s natural alarm system flips on when life piles up, summoning energy, focus and tension to help you cope. The trouble comes when the alarm never turns off.

“Instead of fighting stress, we want to work with it,” Sullivan explains. “Your body is giving you information. Tools like breathwork, boundaries and movement help you respond to that information instead of getting swept away by it.”

Below are a few Modern Minds approved practices to help soften the edges of the season.

1. The Two-Minute Reset

When your mind feels like an overstuffed carry-on, try this simple pattern: Inhale for four counts, exhale for six. Repeat for two minutes.

“Longer exhales signal safety to the brain,” says Sullivan. “It’s a tiny intervention that can shift your entire day.”

2. The “Good Enough” Rule

Whether it’s holiday meals, final exam expectations, or the nightly elf acrobatics, perfection often sneaks in disguised as helpful enthusiasm.

“Good enough is a gift,” says Sullivan. “It creates space for presence instead of pressure.”

3. Micro-Joy Hunting

Stress narrows your view. Deliberate joy widens it again. Look for tiny sparks: warm mugs, quiet car rides, the sweet relief of finishing something hard.

“Micro-joys don’t ignore the hard stuff,” says Sullivan. “They remind your brain that the hard stuff isn’t the whole story.”

4. Movement as Medicine

Holiday schedules stretch thin, but even a five-minute walk or stretch can unclench the system.

“Movement helps the body discharge stress instead of storing it,” Sullivan says. “Small doses count.”

5. Boundaries Wrapped Like Gifts

Say no quickly, kindly and without apology. Protecting your bandwidth is an act of health, not stinginess.

“Boundaries are one of the most protective tools we have,” says Sullivan. “They’re energy management, not rejection.”

6. Name Your Season

Ask yourself quietly: What season am I in right now? Finals season? Caregiving season? Grief season? Holiday-overload season?

“When you name your season,” Sullivan says, “you reduce the expectation that you’re supposed to be functioning like someone in a completely different chapter.”

7. Let Someone Else Be the Hero

Delegate tasks. Share emotional load. Recruit help for the elf’s nightly escapades.

“We aren’t meant to do life alone,” Sullivan says. “Asking for help is a sign of awareness, not weakness.”

8. A Cue for Kindness

When stress tightens its grip, place your hand over your heart and say: This is a lot, and I’m doing the best I can.

“Simplicity matters,” Sullivan shares. “Self-compassion is one of the most regulating practices we have, and it doesn’t require anything fancy to work.”

The Takeaway

You don’t have to earn rest. You don’t have to nail the holiday aesthetic. You don’t have to fix everything before the clock strikes January 1. The season can hold delight and difficulty at the same time and you are allowed to move through it with humanity instead of hyper-performance.