Currently Browsing: Holiday Survival Guide
“Christmas gift suggestions: To your enemy, forgiveness. To an opponent, tolerance. To a friend, your heart. To a customer, service. To all, charity. To every child, a good example. To yourself, respect.” ~ Oren Arnold
Today on Table Talk, I shared a short (and I hope, special) holiday message with you. You can listen to the show via the player, below.
On this Saturday, the week day we focus on our...
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By Elissa Al-Chokhachy
Winter holidays are filled with joy and celebration. During this time, millions of people reverently pay homage to the miracles in their faith traditions and heritage. Others celebrate meaningful relationships with loved ones, family and friends. From festive gatherings, thoughtful exchange of cards, notes and presents to charitable gift giving, these activities...
This week’s poll, sponsored by Caregiving.com and eCareDiary.com, asks the question I’d love to know the answer to: How do you stay sane during the holidays?
How Do You Stay Sane During the Holiday Season?online...
(A note from Denise: I hope yesterday was a good day for everyone. But just in case…)
It was yesterday so it should be in our past.
But, sometimes, the emotional left-overs hang around as long as those turkey legs. Those holiday hang-overs of resentments and regrets or sadness and sullenness can turn the next few days sour.
Who wants that?
So, tell us: What are your emotional left-overs? Tell us now so you...
Today, on Your Caregiving Journey, Dr. Eliabeth Lombardo, author of “A Happy You–Your Ultimate Prescription for Happiness,” joined us to share tips on how to have happy moments during a holiday season that just seems to be about stress.
During our discussion, a visitor to our chat room said she is going to carry a paper and pen during her holiday get-togethers and jot down the odd, bizarre and...
G-J sent me an email after listening to yesterday’s show with Ellen Rogin. Have you ever had people post ideas for creative, reasonable gifts, she asked?
So, I’d love to know: What suggestions do you have for creative, affordable gifts? Share your tips here throughout the holiday season.
This afternoon, Ellen Rogin joined us on Your Caregiving Journey to talk about creating (and sticking to) a holiday spending plan. You can listen to our show via the player below.
During the show, we offered suggestions on how to create your spending plan, how to communicate with family members if your spending plan changes (it’s less than last year, for instance) and alternatives to gifts.
I’d love to...
Commercials tells us we should love the holidays. During the holidays, commercials tell us, we have fun parties to attend, glamorous clothes to wear, beautiful gifts to open.
It seems there is much to love about the holidays.
Except for those things we hate.
So, tell us what you feel bad telling anyone else: What do you hate about the holidays?
Inside Our Holiday Survival Guide
Keep Your Cool
The Chocolate’s...
You want it to be nice, unforgettable, special, as close to perfect as possible. Surely, there can’t be that many more left for both of you to enjoy.
But, the pressure to make it perfect can ruin any well-intentioned holiday, be it Mother’s Day, Father’s Day or Christmas. And, the pressure intensifies because of those thoughts in the back of your head: How many more holidays will we have with Dad (or your...
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During the holiday, we are told to Make Merry or Be Merry. We are wished a Merry Christmas.
Can we really have Merry in our life?
Yes. You actually already do. You have Merry when you hold your caree’s hand, when you share a smile with a loved one, when you let peace live in your heart.
Merry is about transcending a caree’s disease process, honoring what you love, and staying...
Change is the constant in caregiving. And, it’s not just changes from day to day; often, changes occur one minute to the next.
When you’re close to these changes, you may adjust to them without much thought. Until a milestone, like the holiday season, happens. And, then you think: Wow! It’s all different now.
So, tell us: What’s different for you (and your care recipient) this holiday...
Today, on Your Caregiving Journey, Crystal Roberts, national director of memory care, Emeritus Senior Living, shared tips to keep your care recipient involved in the holidays. She also shared ways to prepare your care recipient for holiday visitors–and well as how to set expectations for visiting family and friends. You can listen to the show via the player at the bottom of this post.
Some tips to keep in...
Does “wonderful” describe your life?
Yes, it does!
It does because of you. You make it wonderful because you believe in yourself. Because you keep the faith in yourself, even on your rough days. Because your decisions reflect the respect you have for yourself, your family and your values. Because you know about the precious commodity called time–so you use your time wisely. Because you live fully...
Today, on Your Caregiving Journey, Sheri Samotin, family transition coach, joined us to share tips long-distance family caregivers can use during holiday visits. You can listen to our show via the player at the end of this post.
Sheri shared some great tips, which can apply to all caregiving situations:
–An omission in a routine can indicate the need for more help. For instance, did your care recipient attend...
Anna Stookey, our feel-good expert who joins us monthly on Your Caregiving Journey, is holding a one-hour free teleclass to help us avoid holiday over-eating. Here are the details:
Over the Strudel and Through the Nog:
The Body Reunion Solution to Avoiding Holiday Overeating
9:30am PST/12:30pm EST on Saturday, December 19th
Tune in before you go off to do your holiday shopping!
We’ll explore how to:
*Steer...
The holidays should bring good tidings. Instead, they sometimes can seem to bring a laundry list of chores and hassles, which can hide the true meaning of the holiday season.
In preparation for this year’s holidays, target. Meaning, target what you want.
Do you want a holiday without a lot of fuss? Would you like to make a big deal about this holiday because you’ll all be together? Or, do you want to...
Today on Your Caregiving Journey, Anna Stookey joined us for the second part of our discussion on healing family rifts. Our discussion focused on spending time during the holidays with those who just seem to push our buttons. (You can listen to our show via the player at the bottom of this post.)
Some suggestions to keep in mind:
1. Just let your family “be” rather than expecting them to be who you think they...
