Feeling overwhelmed during the holidays is common. Here are 5 tips to help reduce stress and enjoy the season:

Plan Ahead

Set Realistic Expectations

Take Time for Yourself

Stay Active

Seek Support  

Anxiety is a common and natural human emotion that becomes a psychological concern when it is excessive, persistent, and interferes with daily functioning. From a psychological perspective, it is a future-oriented, long-acting response to a diffuse or perceived threat, distinguished from fear, which is an immediate response to a specific danger. 

Summary of Key Psychological Aspects

Definition and Function: Anxiety is characterized by apprehension, tension, and worry about potential future dangers or upsetting events. While mild anxiety can be adaptive, alerting us to dangers and improving focus, pathological anxiety is disproportionate to the situation.

Symptoms: Anxiety manifests physically, psychologically, and behaviorally.

Physical symptoms include increased heart rate, rapid breathing, sweating, trembling, nausea, and muscle tension.

Psychological symptoms involve racing thoughts, feelings of impending doom, difficulty concentrating, and irritability.

Behavioral responses often involve avoidance of situations or triggers that provoke anxiety.

Anxiety Disorders: When anxiety is overwhelming and persistent for extended periods (e.g., six months for GAD), it may indicate an anxiety disorder, the most common type of mental disorder, affecting nearly 30% of adults at some point in their lives. Specific types include Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD), Panic Disorder, Social Anxiety Disorder, and phobias.

Comorbidity and Causes: Anxiety disorders often co-occur with other conditions, especially major depressive disorder. Risk factors include genetic predisposition and environmental factors such as trauma or difficult childhood experiences.

Treatment: Anxiety disorders are highly treatable. Effective approaches include psychotherapy (such as cognitive-behavioral therapy), medication, stress management techniques, and support groups. 

Understanding the distinction between normal anxiety and a disorder is key to seeking appropriate help and improving quality of life. Further resources and information are available from organizations like the American Psychological Association (APA) and the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH).