The holiday season can be both joyful and overwhelming. While it's a time of celebration, connection, and tradition, it can also bring stress, emotional triggers, and exhaustion. Sometimes we feel empowered and ready to be with the people we love the most, and sometimes we're trying to wrap our mind around having dinner with the people who trigger us deeply. To help you navigate this time with more ease and intention, I've created a comprehensive guide based on a recent episode of The Healing Lifestyle podcast. During this season, we'll explore meditations, movements, herbs, and crystals that can support your mind, body, and spirit.
Each section includes a simple practice you can do at home to integrate these tools into your daily life.
Meditation Practices for Emotional Balance
Meditation is one of the most powerful tools for navigating emotional ups and downs. By centering yourself, you can create a sense of inner calm amid external chaos. Here are three meditations designed for common holiday challenges:
Releasing Holiday Stress: Grounding Meditation
This meditation helps release the pressure of holiday planning, social obligations, and family dynamics.
Practice:
Find a quiet space where you won’t be disturbed.
Sit comfortably with your feet firmly on the ground.
Close your eyes and take a deep breath in through your nose, exhaling through your mouth.
Visualize roots growing from the soles of your feet into the earth, anchoring you deeply.
As you exhale, imagine releasing any stress or tension into the earth.
Continue for 5-10 minutes, allowing each breath to ground you further.
Why It Works: Grounding through visualization reconnects you to the present moment, reducing anxiety and helping you feel more centered.
Healing Family Tensions: Heart-Opening Meditation
Family gatherings can stir up old wounds. This meditation focuses on compassion and forgiveness to foster healing.
Practice:
Sit in a comfortable position and place one hand on your heart.
Inhale deeply, imagining warm light filling your chest.
As you exhale, picture that light expanding outward to those around you.
Repeat the affirmation: “I release the past and embrace the present with love.”
Stay with this visualization for 5-7 minutes.
Why It Works:Focusing on heart energy allows you to soften emotional walls, fostering empathy and understanding, even in challenging family dynamics.
Finding Joy Amid the Chaos: Gratitude Meditation
This practice cultivates a sense of appreciation, shifting your focus from stress to joy.
Practice:
List three things you’re grateful for as you inhale.
With each exhale, silently say, “Thank you.”
Visualize these moments, allowing feelings of gratitude to fill your body.
Spend at least 5 minutes in this state, amplifying positive energy.
Why It Works: Gratitude shifts your perspective, helping you focus on the positives rather than the
pressures of the season.
Movement Practices for Releasing Tension
Incorporating mindful movement into your routine helps release stagnant energy and brings clarity to your mind. Our bodies hold on to so much of the anticipation, stress, and anxiety that come with the holidays, whether it is meeting expectations or having to answer unsolicited questions from well-meaning family members. Movement gives your body the permission to not hold on to such heavy energy. Movement allows your body to shift that energy and use it for inner peace, steadiness, stability, calm, and inner power. Below are some yogic movements that can serve you during this time. My personal belief is when in doubt DANCE IT OUT! Move that sofa or that coffee table out of the way and dance out everything you're holding on to and watch your mood and outlook shift for the better.
Morning Energizer: Sun Salutation Flow
Kickstart your day with a grounding, energizing practice to awaken your body and mind.
Practice:
Stand tall in Mountain Pose (Tadasana) with feet hip-width apart.
Inhale, lifting your arms overhead, and exhale into a Forward Fold.
Inhale to Halfway Lift, lengthening your spine.
Exhale back into Forward Fold.
Inhale into a standing position with arms overhead, then exhale to return to Mountain Pose.
Repeat 5-7 times.
Why It Works:This flow invigorates your body while providing a mental reset, helping you approach your day with a calm and clear mind.
Midday Reboot: Gentle Hip-Opening Sequence
Releasing tension in the hips can ease emotional stress, particularly when holiday overwhelm sets in.
Practice:
Begin in a seated position with legs extended.
Bring your right foot over your left thigh into a seated figure-four stretch.
Inhale to lengthen your spine and exhale as you fold forward gently.
Hold for 5 breaths, then switch sides.
Why It Works:The hips often store emotional tension, and this practice helps release it, leaving you feeling lighter and more relaxed.
Evening Wind-Down: Grounding Foot Massage
End your day by reconnecting with your body through mindful touch.
Practice:
Sit comfortably and place one foot on your opposite thigh.
Massage your foot with gentle pressure, starting at the heel and moving toward the toes.
Focus on any areas of tension, breathing deeply as you release them.
Repeat on the other foot.
Why It Works:Touch stimulates your nervous system, helping you relax and transition into a restful state.
Herbal Remedies for Inner Peace and Strength
Herbs can be powerful allies during the holidays, helping to calm nerves, boost immunity, and balance emotions. These herbs have powerful healing properties spiritually and physically that can help regulate your nervous system and calm your mind and body for clarity during the holiday season. Spiritually, herbs can give you insight into the emotions you're sitting with and the solutions and new thought patterns to embrace. Physically, herbs can heal any inflammation, toxins, and stressors the body is starting to manifest. Here are some of my top herbs for navigating challenging times (I like to call them chracter-building opportunities).
CHAMOMILE for relaxation
Chamomile is known for its calming properties, perfect for winding down after a long day. Chamomile helps your crown chakra by helping you not overthink in stressful situations. Chamomile lets your heart and mind connect so you can remain level-headed and open.
Physical Benefits:
Calms the nervous system
Promotes restful sleep
Spiritual Benefits:
Soothes emotional turbulence
Enhances inner peace and calmness
Practice: Brew a cup of chamomile tea 30 minutes before bed. As you sip, focus on your breathing, allowing the warmth and soothing effects to wash over you.
ASHWAGANDHA for Stress Relief
Ashwagandha is an adaptogen that helps your body manage stress and maintain balance. Ashwagandha helps your root and sacral chakra maintain balance through emotional stability.
Physical Benefits:
Reduces cortisol levels
Supports adrenal health
Spiritual Benefits:
Balances energy
Encourages emotional resilience
Practice: Take Ashwagandha as a tea, tincture, or supplement during high-stress periods. Incorporate a mindful moment by setting an intention for calm and resilience as you take it.
PEPPERMINT for Energy and Focus
Peppermint invigorates the senses, helping to clear mental fog and restore focus. I love peppermint for healing the heart and throat chakras! Peppermint allows you to remain open and speak your truth with a hint of sweetness and clarity. It gives you s subtle energy boost without overtaking you with energy.
Physical Benefits:
Relieves headaches
Boosts digestion and clarity
Spiritual Benefits:
Clears mental fog
Invites refreshing energy
Practice: Diffuse peppermint essential oil in your space or brew a peppermint tea in the afternoon for a mental boost.
GINGER for Warmth and Vitality
Ginger is a powerful herb for healing the solar chakra and root chakra. It keeps you grounded while also giving you the spice and power you need to stand up for yourself.
Physical Benefits:
Aids digestion
Reduces inflammation
Spiritual Benefits:
Invites courage and strength
Boosts confidence and empowerment
Practice: Drink ginger tea or use fresh ginger in meals. Visualize its warmth spreading throughout your body, energizing and protecting you.
LAVENDER for Calm and Serenity
Lavender is great to use when you need peace on your side as well as a fortified connection with your intuition. Lavender encourages clarity, peace, and a sense of oneness, making it ideal for spiritual practices and meditation. This is a go-to for healing your third eye and crown chakra.
Physical Benefits:
Eases tension and headaches
Promotes restful sleep
Spiritual Benefits:
Restores emotional balance
Invites peace and harmony
Practice: Diffuse lavender oil or brew lavender tea. As you inhale its calming scent, imagine stress melting away.
MULLEIN for Respiratory Support
Mullein is one of my favorite herbs for healing the heart chakra. Mullien allows us to navigate grief, accept our reality for what it is, and protect our hearts in the process.
Physical Benefits:
Soothes the respiratory system
Clears congestion
Spiritual Benefits:
Encourages clarity in communication
Clears emotional blockages
Practice: Make mullein tea, inhaling deeply as you sip. Visualize it cleansing both your physical and emotional pathways.
Crystals for Protection, Grounding, and Joy
Crystals offer energetic support, enhancing your intentions for healing and clarity. Crystals offer us an opportunity to heal and regulate our bodies on a cellular level. Below are the crystals I love using for protecting my energy, shielding myself from negative energy, and activating my inner power.
Black Tourmaline for Protection
Benefits:
Shields against negativity
Grounds your energy
Practice: Carry Black Tourmaline in your pocket or wear it. Visualize a protective barrier surrounding you.
Amethyst for Emotional Balance
Benefits:
Enhances calm and clarity
Supports intuitive insight
Practice: Hold Amethyst during meditation, focusing on its calming energy. Let it guide you into a state of peace.
Citrine for Joy and Abundance
Benefits:
Promotes positivity and abundance
Invites joy and warmth
Practice: Place Citrine near holiday decorations. Affirm: “I invite joy, abundance, and light into my life.”
Tiger’s Eye for Strength and Confidence
Benefits:
Enhances courage and willpower
Balances emotional extremes
Practice: Hold Tiger’s Eye in your hand during challenging moments. Visualize its energy flowing through you, boosting your confidence and resilience.
As you prepare for the holiday season, incorporate these practices into your routine. Let me know how they work for you. Whether it's through meditation, movement, herbal remedies, or crystal work, each tool offers a pathway to healing. Check out my The Healing Lifestyle Podcast for more tools and tips on navigating the holiday season.
For a more personalized approach, book an Ancestral Wellness Reading or explore custom herbal remedies and crystals curated to support your unique needs. By taking small, intentional steps, you can transform your holiday experience into one of connection, peace, and joy. Book Your Session.
Visit Domango Training or follow me at @domangotraining on social media for more healing resources.
Let’s make this holiday season a time of true transformation and joy.
This blog post is part of my ongoing effort to provide tools that empower your healing journey. Feel free to reach out with questions or book a session today!
Happy Healing!
-Shanda <3
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