Ken Timoney: Considering Christmas…

December 10th, 2009

Christmas is a wonderful time of the year to catch up with family and friends and take some much needed time off. But it tends to be a very busy time for most of us also with gifts to buy and the larder to stock. With so much to do and not enough time we tend to get caught up in our own little whirlwind. But it doesn’t have to be that way at all. If you take some time to consider yourself as much as you do others, I find it can make for a more enjoyable season!

 The key thing about Christmas is to take it at your own pace and tailor it to what you can do and what you enjoy. This goes not just for people with arthritis, but for everyone. That festive feeling starts early and takes some enthusiasm to keep it going right through to the New Year. It helps to remember that Christmas should fit what is possible, not necessarily what is ideal.  

People always advise planning in advance for Christmas, but as someone with arthritis, I really can’t emphasise this point enough. The more time you give yourself to tick things off your list, the less stressed out you’ll be. And we all know what that means for pain…! 

This goes for shopping too. If you can get out and go shopping for gifts or food on the quieter days, it will make the whole experience less stressful and even enjoyable. Don’t try and get too much bought in the one day, and treat yourself to a cup of tea along the way to take the weight off! 

If you can, try to include ‘free’ days in your Christmas plan. This will give you spare days to do things you haven’t done but were supposed to do, acting like a bonus day! If however you are super-organised and you find you have nothing to do on your ‘bonus day’, take a day for yourself and read a book, watch a movie or go for a walk. In fact, I always find that a bit of exercise does me the world of good when I’m feeling overwhelmed or stressed. It doesn’t have to be anything overly ambitious necessarily, even getting some fresh air can really help to clear your head and give you extra energy too.

On the flip side, it is really important that you sleep well over this busy period. The excitement of festive activities can keep adrenaline flowing and this in turn can disrupt sleep. Disrupted or poor sleep is one of the big factors in the pain cycle. Look for the Coping with Pain booklet on the Arthritis Ireland website which will give you some information on breaking this pain cycle. 

You should also be mindful of eating regularly to maintain energy levels. As we all know, Christmas tends to be a time of overindulgence and irregular mealtimes. Missing meals or eating at irregular intervals can actually cause stress, tiredness and can sometimes exaggerate our perception of pain. 

Over the Christmas period everyone wants to celebrate and be merry with the people they love. However it’s also a time when grief and loneliness can be magnified. Taking a moment to call in on a neighbour, calling up an old friend or bringing a plate of Christmas dinner to someone who lives on their own will make their Christmas and warm your own heart. 

After that all that’s left to say is Merry Christmas and best wishes for the New Year!

This entry was posted on Thursday, December 10th, 2009 at 4:35 pm |

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