You are not alone.
I've heard from so many people that they feel reluctant to decorate for the holidays. They're just not feeling it. Listening to music and seeing the Christmas lights isn't helping to boost the holiday spirit. They're not up for baking cookies or following through with their usual traditions.
And that's completely okay.
I recently took part in a mindfulness teacher training, and one of our assignments was to practice mindfulness every day. At the beginning of the second class, the instructor asked everyone how their week went. Everyone said they meditated nearly every day, felt relaxed and that overall they had a great week. When it was my turn to speak, I shared my vulnerability.
I meditated for 10 minutes once and then between it being my first week at my new office and some other things happening, I just couldn't get into it.
The instructor's response....that's completely okay.
Life happens, and we're not always in a place where we're up for doing the things we'd usually like to do. The instructor appreciated that my response was the polar opposite of everyone elses, because in order to understand how we're able to do such things with ease, we also have to understand that there will be times when these things are not easy....and how do we get out of these moments is what matters most.
I'll share that for me personally, having my mentor tell me that it was completely okay to feel what I was feeling made it easier for me to slip back into meditation, which not only did I do more the following week, but I thought of an idea of how to help others improve their ability to be mindful. (more on that sometime next year)
It's okay if you're not feeling the holiday spirit. But if you are feeling like you're dragging and lacking motivation to do things, consider getting an acupuncture treatment. Acupuncture is one of the best modalities for treating stress, anxiety and depression. Eastern medicine does not see the distinction between body, mind and spirit, so in every treatment there is a component that's designed to support your spirit, which has been necessary for many during these pandemic times.
This image looks similar to what I've shared in past newsletters. This is the 5 Element Theory chart, but what's special about this one is that it illustrates the spirits of each element. We like to have a healthy balance between these spirits, because when they get out of balance then we start to feel things like anxiety, depression, excessive grief, etc.
If this is speaking to you, I'm here to help you. Helping to balance these spirits and relieve the effects of anxiety, depression and stress is one of my favorite things to treat.