{"id":1571,"date":"2023-12-19T10:36:24","date_gmt":"2023-12-19T15:36:24","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/unified.co.grant.wi.gov\/?p=1571"},"modified":"2023-12-19T10:36:24","modified_gmt":"2023-12-19T15:36:24","slug":"are-you-experiencing-financial-stress-this-holiday-season","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/unified.co.grant.wi.gov\/index.php\/2023\/12\/19\/are-you-experiencing-financial-stress-this-holiday-season\/","title":{"rendered":"Are You Experiencing Financial Stress this Holiday Season?"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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Here’s an article by Adriana Morga that may help! See the source link below for more information!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The holidays are supposed to be a joyful time, but they can also be financially stressful. With gifts, social gatherings and plane tickets home, the costs can start piling up.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Compared to the height of the pandemic, \u201cwe\u2019re having less stress navigating the things that bring us together during the holidays. What is different from last year is how much financial stress there is,\u201d said Dr. Rebecca Brendel, director of the American Psychiatric Association.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Here are recommendations from experts to reduce financial stress during the holidays:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

SET EXPECTATIONS<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

In many families, the holidays mean going all out with gift giving. But this can quickly become stressful if your finances make it hard to keep up.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Managing expectations is key, according to Sarah Foster, a Bankrate.com<\/a> analyst.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cDuring the holiday season, we often feel like not talking about money, not letting individuals know how much the gift we bought for them cost,\u201d said Foster, who recommends leaving aside taboos and talking about how much you can afford to give this year.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

For Kathy Colmenares, a Connecticut-based senior caregiver and singer who experienced financial challenges during the pandemic, setting expectations meant choosing to cut down on the amount of money she sends to her family and friends in Venezuela.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI used to not care if I had no money as long as I could send money to help,\u201d she said. \u201cI have to put myself and my family first.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

MAKE A BUDGET<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Setting a budget can help prevent stress during the holidays, Brendel said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cMaking decisions and sticking to them can really avoid regret and stress after the spending happens, when the January bills start coming in,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

She recommends prioritizing who gets individual gifts and organizing a gift game such as white elephant or gift pool with the rest of your loved ones. Alternatively, if you are planning to give individual gifts, she recommends allowing your family members to say which things they\u2019d really like, since it takes the pressure and stress off of you.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

GET CREATIVE<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

There are several alternatives to spending a lot of money. They include:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u2014 Homemade gifts<\/p>\n\n\n\n

One of Brendel\u2019s favorite homemade gifts is cocktail mason jars. You put the ingredients for a cocktail in a mason jar and the recipient just has to add water or alcohol.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This year, Lena Liu, 29, a Massachusetts-based resident physician, will give homemade bracelets to some of her friends.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIt can be really thoughtful and it actually ends up not being so expensive either,\u201d Liu said. \u201cThey know that you put your work and your energy into designing the bracelet and getting the beads so they really appreciate that.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u2014 Gift cards<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Gift cards can seem impersonal, but Foster argues that they are a great way to stay within your budget since you can plan out the exact amount you\u2019re spending on each card.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u2014 Experiences<\/p>\n\n\n\n

When patients approach Karen Lynn Cassiday, managing director of the Anxiety Treatment Center of Greater Chicago<\/a>, about their financial stress during the holidays, the first advice she gives is to grant experiences rather than items.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe thing that each person most deeply needs is to be known, heard and seen,\u201d Cassiday said. \u201cThen doing something with them or something for them is priceless.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

You could also gift a photoshoot or framed pictures or digital albums to commemorate happy experiences.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u2014 The gift of time<\/p>\n\n\n\n

If you can\u2019t afford to take your parents on a trip or visit them during the holidays, giving them more of your time can be a true gift, according to Eliza Menninger, medical director of the Behavioral Health Partial Hospital Program at McLean Hospital in Massachusetts<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Whether it\u2019s planning weekly video calls with your friend group or calling your grandma every day, Menninger suggests you think of non-monetary gifts that your loved ones will appreciate.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

CREATE YOUR OWN TRADITIONS<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Expectations or traditions you grew up with, such as buying expensive gifts for every member of your extended family, can cause stress during the holidays. Creating your own new traditions can help reduce it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This year, Valentina Chavez Otero, a 22-year-old resident of Norwalk, Connecticut, is planning to celebrate the holidays by spending a day in New York City.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI\u2019m not very interested in celebrating Christmas, I just want to spend a day walking and seeing new things,\u201d said Chavez Otero, who has faced economic instability since moving from Cali, Colombia, with her boyfriend.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

DIVIDE RESPONSIBILITIES<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

With inflation making holiday food even more expensive than usual, one way to cut costs is making sure whoever is hosting doesn\u2019t have to pay for the whole meal.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

If your parents, grandparents, aunts or friends are hosting in their house, you could propose that everyone brings a dish, Brendel said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cPotlucks can always be fun, and they take away the stress of preparation from one person and also reduce the cost from falling on the host,\u201d she said. \u201cThese kinds of ideas can really reduce financial burden and stress.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

COMMUNICATE YOUR FEELINGS<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

If you are having financial difficulties, it can help to talk about it with your family and friends, Brendel said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Liu, who was diagnosed with anxiety and depression during her first year as a medical resident, now feels more comfortable talking with her family after keeping her struggles to herself for six months.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI\u2019m of Chinese ethnicity and, in our culture, it\u2019s very stigmatized to talk about mental health at all,\u201d Liu said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Her parents and twin sister helped her through the difficult time, and her father shared that he struggled to show emotions when he was growing up and wants her generation to be able to be more open.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

PRACTICE A HEALTHY ROUTINE<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

While your stress might stem from financial struggles, negative feelings can spill over to other aspects of your life, making it hard to enjoy the holidays.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Menninger recommends taking some time out from social gatherings and Christmas shopping to do something for yourself, such as exercising or meditating.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

If you tend to forget to take a second to breathe, Menninger recommends you add an alarm in your phone as a reminder. The best times to have some time alone are between 4 p.m. and 6 p.m., she said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

For Lori Lebson, a 41-year-old mom from Massachusetts, it\u2019s crucial to go for a run at some time during the day, even if it means waking up a bit before her children.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Chavez Otero, who has been having trouble sleeping for the last few months, watches sleeping meditations on YouTube to help her reduce anxiety. Liu\u2019s favorite relaxing activity is doing yoga before or after a hospital shift.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Liu also practices journaling, writing down what she is grateful for in her life.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Getting enough sleep is also critical, so Menninger recommends turning off your electronics a few hours before bed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Source: https:\/\/apnews.com\/article\/inflation-business-mental-health-ae2f17913cfa25162da8a16bc0c6f7d6?fbclid=IwAR1v3BEK164TS-LSL_eKPF566zULzyWvq0FXlKM7rht7oHxAXdCm0zoAODk<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Here’s an article by Adriana Morga that may help! See the source link below for more information! The holidays are supposed to be a joyful time, but they can also be financially stressful. With gifts, social gatherings and plane tickets home, the costs can start piling up. Compared to the height of the pandemic, \u201cwe\u2019re … Continue reading “Are You Experiencing Financial Stress this Holiday Season?”<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":7,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"_uag_custom_page_level_css":"","_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[207,4,10,82,9],"tags":[15,21,91,17,16,6,51,37,20,34],"uagb_featured_image_src":{"full":false,"thumbnail":false,"medium":false,"medium_large":false,"large":false,"1536x1536":false,"2048x2048":false,"post-thumbnail":false},"uagb_author_info":{"display_name":"Ben Biddick","author_link":"https:\/\/unified.co.grant.wi.gov\/index.php\/author\/bbiddick\/"},"uagb_comment_info":0,"uagb_excerpt":"Here’s an article by Adriana Morga that may help! See the source link below for more information! The holidays are supposed to be a joyful time, but they can also be financially stressful. With gifts, social gatherings and plane tickets home, the costs can start piling up. Compared to the height of the pandemic, \u201cwe\u2019re…","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/unified.co.grant.wi.gov\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1571"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/unified.co.grant.wi.gov\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/unified.co.grant.wi.gov\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/unified.co.grant.wi.gov\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/7"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/unified.co.grant.wi.gov\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1571"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/unified.co.grant.wi.gov\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1571\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1573,"href":"https:\/\/unified.co.grant.wi.gov\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1571\/revisions\/1573"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/unified.co.grant.wi.gov\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1571"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/unified.co.grant.wi.gov\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1571"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/unified.co.grant.wi.gov\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1571"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}