5 Ways to End 2020 Without Pulling Your Hair Out

December, it comes around so quickly, and often it can be one of the most stressful months of the year. We feel this pressure to finish the year off strong and to tie off every loose end. We start to look at everything we think we should have done during the year, what goals we didn’t achieve.

There are holiday preparations to think about, making sure your family aren’t all killing each other over the Christmas table, and trying to create perfect Instagram worthy memories. Then this year there is the added emotions of missing family that we can’t be with, maybe not actually being able to take a holiday or break, and feeling like you just want to hide away until the clock strikes midnight bringing in 2021.

Is it the most wonderful time of the year?

The thing with a new year, unfortunately they don’t magically take away all the issues you were experiencing at the end of the year before. This year has been a crazy ride for pretty much everyone with loss, grief, isolation and really having to face ourselves. It has definitely left a lot of people feeling tired, lost and burnt out.

This year, why not give yourself permission to end the year off slowly, gently – without pulling your hair out. With everything that went wrong this year, we also have had the blessings of seeing so much love, community and really leaning into what matters to us. So, with this in mind, here are 5 ways you can give yourself space to close off this year without the same stress of years past.

 5 Ways to finish off 2020 gently

-         Reflect – there are so many lessons we can take away from this year. So even if you take a few moments to see what you have learnt about yourself, your life and the world in general. Give yourself those few moments as it is those lessons that hold the clues for your next steps for the year ahead.

-         Self-Care – what make time for myself amongst all the festive season craziness? I am not saying you need to take a bubble bath everyday and make sure you have time for massages and manis (but if you are able to do that or anything that lights you up then that’s a bonus). This is more about giving yourself a few minutes a day to make sure you are ok and not getting roped into any of the madness this time of the year can bring.

-         Let Go – this is for my fellow perfectionist (or recovering ones). If things don’t go as planned, if you weren’t able to get the Elf in Shelf doing crazy things around the house each day, if you aren’t able to take a proper break just yet. Whatever it is that is not going in accordance with any preconceived plan.. LET IT GO. If this year has taught us anything it is not to sweat the small stuff. No one will know that it didn’t go to plan, your kids won’t be scared for life and you will be able to take a proper break soon, you’ve got this!

-         Celebrate – and by this I mean celebrate yourself. This year may have been the best or worst for you, but either way make sure you take the time to celebrate yourself for making it through what has been a hectic year. You have been resilient, strong, and probably more so than you actually realise or give yourself credit for. CELEBRATE YOU!

-         Be Present – take a digital detox, even if it’s for an hour a day. Give yourself permission to actually be in the moments that come up (whether they are Instagram worthy or not!). This really can be the most wonderful time of the year and set you up for a better year ahead, enjoy the small insignificant moments, they matter!

Wishing you and your family a wonderful festive season and everything of the best for 2021. May you experience love, peace and if you have been feeling lost, I hope that 2021 will be the year you choose to come home to yourself.