Navigating the Holiday Hustle with Awareness and Intention

Today marks the beginning of the hustle and bustle of the "holiday season." While the postcard image of Thanksgiving often includes gratitude, joy, and excitement over being reunited with loved ones, the reality isn't always so picture-perfect! But here's the thing: as humans, we have the power to choose how we want to feel, react, and behave during these gatherings. Yet, it's easy to slip into familiar "roles" and behavior patterns — patterns we are often working on to change the rest of the year.

I was reminded of this just the other day in a conversation with a client. She’s cooking for and hosting her family, whom she loves dearly. But like many of us, her family can also be her biggest triggers.

In our discussion, she realized that when she opens the door to greet her guests, she’s already bracing herself for the comments that might send her into emotional turmoil. She greets them on defense, radiating armored energy. She was anticipating the worst, already feeling what was to come.

We worked through this by pre-processing her triggers. We discussed what beliefs she needed to hold in order for those triggers to affect her — and how she could challenge those limiting beliefs. What would change if she no longer believed that she wasn’t "good enough" for her father? What if, instead of feeling defensive, angry, and hurt, she welcomed her guests with an open heart, compassion, and a changed perspective of herself?

Before her Thanksgiving celebration, she plans to sit down and visualize how she wants to feel. She’ll repeat a mantra we developed together to address her limiting beliefs. Every hour, she will set a timer. When it goes off, she’ll step into a quiet room, take a few deep breaths, and mentally rehearse the kind of person she wants to be in the next 60 minutes — practicing that vital pause between stimulus and reaction.

This is just one example. Other clients have different goals. For instance, one wants to feel nourished instead of overstuffed, so she’s planning ahead: making sure to eat breakfast and avoid heading into the holiday festivities starving. Another client is focused on reducing her alcohol intake, even though her family tends to indulge heavily. We’ve created some "stop gaps" to help her stay mindful and aligned with how she wants to feel when she heads home.

One client is spending Thanksgiving alone. We’ve worked together to design a beautiful, fulfilling day that will nourish her body and spirit and provide emotional fulfillment. Her plans include writing letters to people who have made a meaningful impact on her life this year.

None of this is easy. It requires awareness, intention, and a genuine desire to choose something different.

What I encourage you to do is take a moment to reflect on how you want to feel this Thanksgiving. Whether that’s physical, emotional, or both — what kind of energy do you want to bring to the festivities? What kind of person do you want to be?

You may not be perfect, and none of us are. But every step you take toward showing up as the person you want to be is progress. It’s about making intentional choices — and practicing those choices along the way.

Take a deep breath, and then decide: How do you want to show up this holiday season?

I wish you all a beautiful, nourishing and fulfilling Thanksgiving. You have all made small contributions to the person I am today.