It’s the holiday season. Lights twinkle, gifts get wrapped, and plans are in flux. You’re doing your best to keep up with your daily commitments and the extra effort it takes to navigate this season of celebration, gatherings, and giving. It can be a lot, both wonderful and overwhelming.

On one hand, you have extra time to be with your loved ones and take a break from your normal routines. However, there can also be pressure to say “yes” to all invitations, buy gifts beyond your budget, or overindulge in holiday treats. There are more delicious cookies around than usual. Oh, no!

While the holiday season can be joyful, it can also be stressful, making you feel anxious and out of balance. The good news is that it doesn’t have to be that way.

Recently, I discovered some wonderful grounding practices in “Are You Made at Me? – How to Stop Focusing on What Others Think and Start Living for You” by Meg Josephson, LSCW. These strategies help break the cycle of chronic stress, which negatively affects the mind and body.

Stress: “A Flirty Little Loop”

What is the stress cycle all about? Josephson explains, “The body naturally responds to stress – whether it’s real, remembered, or perceived– with tension, and this response keeps stress and tension going in a flirty little loop.” She describes the four-step cycle:

• Stressful Happening – This could be internal or external, such as “an anxious thought spiral or someone doing something to make you feel unsafe, whether or not you actually are.”

• Body Reacts – Your body responds by tensing up.

• Message Perceived – Tensed muscles send signals to the body indicating that “Something bad is happening! This is stressful.”

• Cycle Continues – “The tense muscles cue more anxious thoughts, more muscular tension, and more panic.” These reactions perpetuate the stress-and-tension loop.

Josephson says, “When the mind is tense, so is the body. When the body is tense, so is the mind. By first noticing that we’re tensing up, feeling stressed, we can immediately insert a pause into this automatic process and begin to soften our bodies. Being aware of the stress is what allows us to start to break the cycle.”

I will highlight my top five favorite grounding practices from the 14 that Josephson shared. These will help you reduce stress, feel more balanced, present, and calm.

“When the mind is tense, so is the body. When the body is tense, so is the mind. ”

— Meg Josephson, LCSW

5 Simple Grounding Practices to Reduce Stress and Nurture Balance

These techniques can be used at any time during your day when you feel stressed. It all starts with awareness—paying attention to body signals like tense muscles.

1. Increasing Exhale

Elongate your exhale by doing a few cycles where you exhale longer than you inhale. For example, inhale for a count of 4 and exhale for a count of 6. This technique stimulates the vagus nerve, which immediately activates the parasympathetic nervous system, or “rest and digest” mode.

2. Humming

Keep your mouth closed, relax your jaw, and breathe in and out through your nose while making a sound with your vocal cords. The gentle buzzing sound creates vibrations that stimulate your vagus nerve. Singing or chanting can also work because the larynx (the voice box) is connected to the vagus nerve.

3. Sensing with 5, 4, 3, 2, 1

Use your senses to ground yourself by noticing the environment around you right now. Observe what’s nearby, and “Name five things you can see, four things you can feel, three things you can hear, two things you can smell, and one thing you can taste.”

4. Using Your Hands

Research shows that “effective touch” is a stress reliever. This can include self-touch. Notice where you feel tension. Place your hand or palm on that area and breathe deeply. For example, if you’re feeling tension in your chest, put your hand there and breathe several times. This practice is calming and reduces stress.

5. Dancing

This practice feels especially fun during the holiday season. Of course, you can do it anytime. Dancing helps integrate movement and breath. It connects you to your body and takes you out of your head. Play your favorite tune and dance away.

How Do You Manage Stress and Invite More Balance?

It’s the season for joy and delight. But when you’re feeling stressed and off balance, accessing that joy can be difficult. Which of these five grounding practices resonates most with you? What else helps you feel grounded, calm, and balanced?

I’d love to hear your thoughts. I invite you to join the conversation.

How Can I Help?

Do you feel overwhelmed, disorganized, stressed, or out of balance? Would you like to make progress? I’m here to help! Virtual organizing is an extraordinary path forward – Local feel with a global reach.

Let’s connect! I’m easy to reach.

• Schedule a Discovery Call

• Fill out the Contact form

• Email me at linda@ohsorganized.com or

• Call 914-271-5673

Getting organized is possible, especially with support.

Thanksgiving is just around the corner. My husband and I are excited to host our family and bring everyone together. I might even make my new peanut butter brownie recipe. A word of warning: it’s hard not to eat the entire tray because they’re so delicious. So, if you ask me for the recipe and make it, be sure to invite people to share it with.

Gratitude fills my thoughts. At the same time, I’m very aware of how challenging these times are. The constant stream of bad news, division, and suffering is impossible to ignore. Hope, love, and gentleness can feel elusive.

Perhaps it’s the eternal optimist in me, but I can’t help myself. Those small moments or glimmers of connection, comfort, generosity, kindness, and joy are also available. I hold them close. They are as essential to me as breathing oxygen.

Recently, I was reading through my journal from this past year. I found a passage I want to share with you. It reminded me how gratitude and being present have been, and continue to be, guiding forces in my life.

My journal entry:

For now, I am here. Rooted in the past, ready for the future, and grounded in the present.

Consider these questions:

• How has your past influenced you?

• Do you feel ready and excited for your future?

• Are you fully present right now?

• How does gratitude connect to your past, future, and present?

3 Ways to Nurture Gratitude To Help You FLourish

1. Rooted

As I reflect on the past, gratitude fills my being. I think about my family, loved ones cherished and now gone, the boundless love and connection, the feeling of home that traveled with me wherever I went, the deep conversations, traditions, music, laughter, and hugs.

I remember and feel grateful for the time spent visiting relatives, traveling, hosting and attending gatherings, renovating, learning, creating, snuggling, being raised, raising kids, and so much more.

Of course, no life or family is perfect. Still, I am grateful for everything and everyone—the beautiful moments and the challenges.

2. Ready

Are any of us ever truly prepared for the future? On one hand, unexpected surprises can arise that might throw us off course or discourage us. Many of these will be impossible to predict.

At the same time, there will be incredibly joyful experiences, opportunities for growth, and adventures.

To me, future readiness is mainly about having an open and flexible attitude toward what may happen. Being ready also involves a certain level of confidence, positivity, anticipation, and acceptance. While I can’t predict what will happen, I hold hope close.

I recognize that what I do today can positively or negatively affect my future. I’m grateful for the actions I’m willing and able to take to create a better tomorrow.

“I am grateful for this moment. I am here now.”

— Linda Samuels, CPO-CD®, CVOP™

3. Grounded

The past has already happened, and the future is not yet here. All we truly have is the present. I am thankful every day for the moments I get to live, breathe, see nature’s wonders, create, work, contribute, inspire, love, and be loved.

I am grateful for my senses, which always delight me and bring me back to the present moment. The magic of this season offers a feast of colors, a variety of delightful scents and flavors, cozy fabrics like cashmere and velvet that bring warmth and comfort, and sounds of wind blowing, music playing, animals calling, and leaves dancing.

Being grounded in the present helps me show up each day for my loved ones, friends, clients, community, colleagues, and myself.

I am grateful for this moment. I am here now.

Are You Rooted, Ready, and Grounded?

We’re complex humans with different backgrounds, dreams, and circumstances. Gratitude can color where we’ve been, where we’re headed, and where we are.

During this season of gratitude, what are you focusing on? Which ideas resonate most with you? I’d love to hear your thoughts. I invite you to join the conversation.

How Can I Help?

This is a wonderful time to plan, get unstuck, and prepare for what’s to come. Are you feeling overwhelmed, stuck, disorganized, or unfocused? Would you like to make progress? I’m here to help! Virtual organizing is an extraordinary path forward – Local feel with a global reach.

Let’s talk. I’m easy to reach.

• Schedule a Discovery Call

• Fill out the Contact form

• Email me at linda@ohsorganized.com or

• Call 914-271-5673

Getting organized, focused, and progressing is possible, especially with support.

The decisions you make relate to different points in time: the past, present, and future. Although you may not always view your choices this way, considering these time parameters can help reduce decision fatigue and create clarity surrounding decision-making.

Making thoughtful decisions can be challenging. Some common decision-making obstacles include:

• Having too many choices

• Lacking clarity

• Feeling rushed

• Asking unhelpful questions

• Deciding when you’re exhausted

• Being afraid to make the wrong choice

Any of these challenges can cause overwhelm, procrastination, or paralysis. However, when you ask questions based on time, it can cut through the noise, clarify your options, and motivate action.

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1. Question to Let Go of the Past

“What’s weighing down your backpack that needs to be released?”

— James Clear

In a recent edition of James Clear’s 3-2-1 newsletter, he explained how “unfinished tasks” carried in your “invisible backpack” weigh you down. Many of these tasks are ones you will think you “should do,” but will probably never get around to.

Clear suggests two strategies. To “lighten the load: finish the task or let it go.” Applying a past timeframe to your decision about completing or releasing a task can help.

Consider these questions:

• How long have you been worrying about and carrying these tasks with you?

• Are past goals or commitments holding you back?

• Which ones are no longer relevant, important, or necessary?
  
  
  
  

2. Question to Improve the Present

“What small change could you make to your surroundings that would steer you toward good habits and away from distractions?”

— James Clear

In another 3-2-1 newsletter, Clear encourages making tiny tweaks to your environment to support building better habits and reducing distractions. Only you know which habits you want to strengthen and which distractions are getting in your way.

Using the present timeframe idea to make proactive choices can be effective here. To do this, think about a current habit you want to build or improve. For example, let’s say you often run late to appointments. This is a source of stress for you and the people in your life. You want to be more punctual, yet find it challenging to get out of the house on time. Let’s say chronic lateness is caused by disorganization at home or your tendency to hyperfocus, which interrupts your sense of time.

Making a slight change in your environment to mitigate distractions and support a better habit could include things like:

• Gather everything you need the night before

• Wake up earlier to prepare

• Use labeled timers to help with transitions and activation

3. Question to Imagine the Future

“What will my future-self thank me for doing now?”

— Stephanie Sarkis, PhD

In Ari Tuckman’s book The ADHD Productivity Manual, he shares one of his favorite questions posed by Stephanie Sarkis, PhD. She asks, “What will my future-self thank me for doing now?”

Let’s apply the future timeframe lens to this inquiry. While the question asks you to do something in the present, it’s in service of your future self.

Think about a goal you want to achieve. Maybe it’s organizing your legal and end-of-life papers, downsizing, or eating healthier. None of these will be realized in the future without taking action now.

Embrace the future construct. Visualize what ‘done’ will look and feel like. This will motivate you now to take action and accomplish the future results you desire.

How to Make More Thoughtful Choices?

Making wise decisions begins with asking good questions. Including a time perspective can clarify your choices. Do you consider the past, present, and future when making decisions? How does using a time construct affect you?

I’d love to hear your thoughts. I invite you to join the conversation.

How Can I Help?

Do you need support with organizing, letting go, or managing your time? I’d love to help! Virtual organizing is an extraordinary path forward – Local feel with a global reach.

Let’s talk. You can:

• Schedule a Discovery Call

• Email me at linda@ohsorganized.com or

• Call 914-271-5673

Organizing your time and space is possible, especially with support.

What is the value of letting go? In many circumstances, your willingness to let go can reduce frustration and enhance your daily life. Let go when you are:

• Stuck

• Overwhelmed

• Frustrated

• Burdened by the past

• Weighed down by physical stuff

• Distressed by non-supportive processes, relationships, and environments

• Determined to be present or move forward

I curated a small collection of my favorite letting-go quotes from Yung Pueblo, Chuck Palahniuk, Todd Henry, and Hans Hoffman. Each idea highlights a unique aspect of releasing.

When you allow yourself to let go, you experience less stress, more flow, and better alignment with your values. The past won’t hold you back. You’ll be more grounded in the present and open to possibilities that you couldn’t see before.

FIVE FAVORITE LETTING GO QUOTES

1. Let Go of the Past

Letting go is a process. Release things that no longer serve a purpose in your life. This will create more mindful and present-centered living.

“When you put yourself through the process of letting go, you gain greater access to the here and now.”

— Yung Pueblo

 2. Let Go of the Stuff

When the volume of possessions becomes overwhelming and burdensome, they take up your valuable time and energy. This is a cue to edit. Keep what’s most important. Release what you can. You’ll feel lighter and less encumbered.

“The things you own end up owning you.”

— Chuck Palahniuk

3. Let Go of the Complex

Life is complicated. However, you don’t have to make things more involved than necessary. Consider what you can release to simplify your schedule, processes, or thought patterns.

“Is there any place where you are making things more complex than they need to be?”

— Todd Henry

4. Let Go of the Only Once Idea

Letting go is like a muscle. It needs to be exercised to develop and experience results. Releasing is not a one-and-done occurrence. It requires time, attention, and practice to experience positive results.

“Letting go is not a one-time event; it is a habit that requires consistent repetition to become strong.”

— Yung Pueblo

 5. Let Go of the Unnecessary

Thinking or thriving is impossible when you have too much stuff, crammed schedules, or unhelpful thoughts. The excess gets in the way and makes it challenging to discover what’s most important. Letting go of the unessential will create space for what you truly value.

“The ability to simplify means to eliminate the unnecessary so that the necessary may speak.”

— Hans Hofmann

Is Letting Go Easy or Challenging?

You might find letting go easy for some areas of your life and more challenging in others. What has been a successful letting-go experience? What has been difficult? I’d love to hear your thoughts. I invite you to join the conversation.

How Can I Help?

Do you want support organizing, planning, or letting go? I’d love to help! Virtual organizing is an extraordinary path forward – Local feel with a global reach.

Please schedule a Discovery Call, email me at linda@ohsorganized.com, or call 914-271-5673. Letting go is possible, especially with support.