Decorating the house, shopping and errands and all those parties! Imagine facing these holiday demands while tired, sick, sad and worried:For those with cancer or other life-threatening illnesses, this time of year can often be far from happy. If this sounds familiar to you, learn how to deal with it here.
Keep your energy
We all think we should be doing more around the holidays than we really do. Whatever your traditions have been, think about the most important parts and decide what to delete or delegate.
Some holiday traditions can be modified to make them less taxing. For example, if you like shopping, avoid the stores when they are busiest for a quieter time, such as a weekday morning. Or, just shop online.
Plan ahead for ways to restore your energy during festive events. For example, if you are attending a party with a family member, find a quiet place away from the crowd to lie down or just take some time.
It doesn't have to be an all-or-nothing approach. Focus on what really matters. Treat your energy as something incredibly valuable and don't feel bad about asking for special considerations.
Ask for help
You may feel that you are the driving force behind many of your traditions. Maybe you've always loved the role of a party planner or cook. But if you don't feel like it this year, fear not – you don't have to do it all yourself. It's fine to hand over the baton.
Getting help is something most of us aren't very good at. It is often helpful to keep a list of tasks. Then, when help is offered, you can clear a specific, important task from your board.
Control what you eat
Food and drink issues are stressful during the holidays. For example, cancer treatment often goes hand in hand with loss of appetite, taste alteration, a need for specialized diets, frequent nausea or alcohol restrictions. Other long-term illnesses have nutritional problems of their own. People recently diagnosed with serious heart disease or diabetes may face new dietary restrictions.
Don't drop your good habits just because it's the holidays. It's okay to indulge a little, but be careful.
Determine what to say… and what not to say
Dealing with serious illness – especially during the holiday season – can be a source of sadness. It's helpful to think about who you can trust versus when you'd rather not say things.
Feel free to acknowledge your feelings. Find the people and places where you can talk about being sad and concerned… a support group or friends, or others who are going through the same thing and are more likely to understand.
Perhaps this holiday season will be the first time your family will see you since your diagnosis. Think about whether you want your illness to be a topic of conversation. What do you want to tell people?
Decide when it is appropriate to discuss your diagnosis. If you have a plan about how much to discuss, you can ease the pressure at this point.
Watch your wallet
As anyone faced with long-term treatment knows, it can get extremely expensive. Add in the impact of shorter working hours, paying a nanny, etc. and finances can become a challenge.
Give yourself permission to scale back. You may be used to spending a certain amount of money on gifts, but it's important to be realistic.
