Throughout the holiday season, the UNMC Wellness Team will be offering regular wellness advice in UNMC Today. The team is comprised of Sarah Fischer, PhD, Steve Wengel, MD, and Priya Gearin, MD. Dr. Fischer is an assistant professor in the UNMC Department of Psychiatry and psychologist at the Aspire Clinic.
The holidays are a time for great excitement and opportunities to connect with our loved ones.
The joy of this season also is often accompanied by our expectations for how we want our holiday celebrations to go. While we make sure everyone is entertained, that everything is decorated beautifully and that everyone is getting along, we often cause our stress levels to increase.
One dimension of wellness impacted the most this time of year is our financial wellness. Holiday financial stress frequently stems from:
- Food costs.
- Wanting everyone to be happy with their gifts.
- Decorations.
- Travel.
- Creating holiday magic for the people you love.
Here are some tips to keep in mind for maintaining your financial health during the holiday season:
- Create a holiday budget, including categories for gifts, travel, food, incidentals or other costs.
- Work with your loved ones to create reasonable expectations related to expenses, such as a maximum budget for gift exchanges or doing a Secret Santa or White Elephant exchange instead of gifts for everyone.
- Remember that the best gifts are from the heart. Handmade gifts, the gift of doing a fun activity together, creating photo collages or gifts that are small but meaningful are all wonderful choices when money is tight.
- Say no and set boundaries when needed.
- Remember that it’s not helpful to compare yourself to others. If someone in your family or friend group chooses to spend excessively or show appreciation through gifts, that is their choice. What is best for them may not align with your priorities or financial goals, and that’s OK.
- For next year, it can be fun and more beneficial for your financial wellness to purchase holiday gifts throughout the year, especially when there’s a good sale!
Giving gifts and creating a wonderful experience for the ones you love can be an important part of the holidays.
As we get closer to the holidays, it can be helpful to think about what makes these things so special. Is it the amount of money spent? Is it the way that a gift can show someone that you know them and are thinking of them? Is it the quality time spent together?
Consider what’s most important for you and your loved ones this holiday season.