December 2024
During the festive season, our wellbeing can suffer. Yes, we get to have a few public holidays off from working with children to rest and refresh, but how many of us don’t because we are swamped with Christmas preparation, shopping and cooking? Some of us become very busy socially, especially if we have family visiting or we are travelling to visit family over the festive season. I have been here many times, looking forward to the few days off, but then feeling even more burnt out afterwards due to the pressures Christmas brings with it.
The answer to managing one’s own wellbeing will look different to everyone. For my mother’s side of the family, they reduced this stress by cutting back on gift giving and even cooking. Yes, the social activity was still a priority with family visiting and wanting to spend time together, but reducing the workload took a lot of pressure off of everyone and made the holiday time a little more enjoyable and relaxing. They managed this by prioritising salads over cooked meals on Christmas day to reduce cooking and cleaning time and choosing to give gifts to only the children in the family (although, not everyone abides by this in a family of shopaholics).
My own strategy is to do Christmas shopping early, usually October or November. I also space out my cooking, spending an hour or two in the kitchen in the few days leading up to Christmas, to prep food in stages. This way, I don’t feel overwhelmed with cooking and then burnt-out on Christmas day. On the other public holidays, I choose to do as least as possible, focusing on relaxing and spending time with loved ones without the fuss. Yes, I am still a little exhausted on Christmas day, but I am able to reduce the pressure and enjoy the holidays a little more.
Some early childhood teachers and educators get the entire school holidays off to rest and recharge, some get one or two weeks off if their service closes over Christmas and New Year’s, and some get only the public holidays off if their centre remains open. Whatever working situation you find yourself in, it’s important to make some time to rest and recharge, and apply strategies that work for you, to reduce your workload and stress over the Christmas period. Our job carries with it plenty of stress as it is, don’t let Christmas be the straw on the camel’s back! Wishing you all a Peaceful Christmas and New Year’s.
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