38: 5 Ways to De-Stress December and LOVE the Holidays Again!

The lights are up, the calendar is full, and your nervous system is waving a tiny white flag. As we celebrate one year of Life is Delicious, we’re giving you something better than another obligation: a calmer, kinder December you can actually enjoy.

If December has you feeling overwhelmed, stretched thin, or stuck in holiday roles you never signed up for, this episode is your permission slip to reclaim a calmer, simpler, more joyful season. Designed especially for midlife women navigating menopause, burnout, emotional labor, and the demands of the sandwich generation, this conversation helps you let go of pressure and create holiday traditions that actually feel good.

We explore why the holidays hit harder in midlife: increased stress, caregiving responsibilities, financial pressure, changing family dynamics, and the mental load women carry without even realizing it. You’ll learn five practical ways to reduce holiday stress—simplifying traditions, shrinking your to-do list, delegating without guilt, spending less while creating more meaning, and setting warm, healthy boundaries.

If you’re craving a holiday season centered around connection, presence, and emotional well-being instead of perfection and performance, you’ll find actionable tools you can use today. Expect grounding prompts, mindset shifts, and simple strategies to help you lower stress, protect your energy, and enjoy a more intentional December.

We’re also celebrating one year of the Life Is Delicious podcast with a special giveaway featuring our guided journal and planner—supporting you in creating your most joyful, empowered next chapter.

This episode is for you if you want to feel calmer, happier, and more in control this holiday season—without losing yourself in the chaos.

We’re also celebrating our one-year anniversary with a special giveaway featuring the Happy Is Not an Accident Guided Journal and the Life Is Delicious Monthly & Weekly Planner—your new companions for creating a life that truly feeds your soul. To enter, leave a review on Apple Podcasts OR enter your email at https://www.LifeIsDelicious.ca  to subscribe and i'll put you into the draw. You have until Christmas Eve to enter.

If this resonates, tap follow, share the episode with a friend who needs permission to simplify, and leave a quick review on Apple Podcasts so more women can find us. And tell me—what tradition are you reshaping this year?

Find Marnie Martin here:

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Chapters

• 0:00 One-Year Milestone & Gratitude
• 0:54 Book Bundle Giveaway Details
• 2:35 Season Two Preview
• 2:35 De-Stressing December: Why It’s Heavy
• 5:27 A New Holiday Mantra
• 6:40 Tip 1: Rethink Traditions
• 9:09 Tip 2: Make The List Doable
• 11:39 Tip 3: Delegate With Grace
• 13:22 Tip 4: Spend Less, Create More
• 15:37 Tip 5: Manage Expectations
• 17:01 Closing Thanks & How To Connect

Transcript

SPEAKER_00: 0:00

Hey beautiful friend. Welcome back to Life is Delicious. I can't believe it, but it is the one year anniversary of the Life is Delicious podcast. I can't believe it's already been a full 12 months. I've had some incredible guests and I've learned a ton about podcasting. And I also just wanted to say thank you for you being here with me along this journey wherever you happen to fall into the podcast. Or maybe somebody shared it with you, and that's awesome too. But just knowing that you guys are out there when I step behind the mic makes it all worthwhile and it makes it so much more fun to know that we're changing our lives together, which is cool. And the nicest part is we don't have to do it alone. We get to share ideas and work on ourselves and just find more ways to bring joy into our daily round. So one of the things I wanted to do because I'm so excited that this one-year mark has actually made it, I decided on Black Friday to do this book bundle giveaway. So a lot of you know that I have a journal, a guided journal called Happy Is Not an Accident. And I also created a, well, an old school paper journal. It's about an eight and a half by eleven, and it is called the Life is Delicious Weekly and Monthly Planner. And I'm just putting a new one out that will be undated. So you can pick up a copy anytime and start your year wherever you are. Some people like to start their fiscal year in September. Maybe you're a teacher, or that's just what feels good to you. Or maybe you're halfway through the year and you just need a little reset, that's okay too. So you can pick up a copy anytime you like and start where you are. So I've decided to give one of each of those books away as a thank you for being here with me. And all you have to do to enter the draw is go to lifeisdelicious.ca and enter your email to get weekly updates from me and notifications when new episodes drop. Or you can go to Apple Podcasts and leave me a review. And each one of those things will get you one entry into the draw. And if you do both, you get two entries into the draw. Super simple. So if you have an opportunity to get in there and leave me a review, I would love it. And I look forward to seeing who I get to gift these books to. Thanks again for coming along on this journey with me, and we've got so much more fun to have in season two, which starts next week. So this week we are going to be talking about de-stressing December, how we're going to create calm and bring joy back to your holiday season. December is supposed to be magical, but for most of us, we're running around overwhelmed, overgiving, and overdoing. And I think it's time for us to take our power back. So this year, I want to help you do it a little bit differently. So take a deep breath, unclench your jaw, and let's give you a December that feels grounded, peaceful, and actually enjoyable. Welcome to this episode of Life is Delicious. I'm Marnie Martin, and I'm so glad you're here. And if this is your first time here, welcome to the Life is Delicious Family. This podcast isn't about surviving midlife, it's about crafting your next chapter life, overflowing with purpose, joy, and delicious possibilities. Listen, midlife doesn't have to be a crisis, it can be a beautiful invitation to remember who we are, to rediscover a new version of ourselves, or to completely reinvent our life to reflect who we are becoming now. So if you're tired of being exhausted, living life on autopilot and putting everyone else first, then you are in the right place. Each week we'll bring you thought-provoking ideas and practical strategies as well as inspiration to help you prioritize yourself again. It's time to take back your joie de vive. So grab a notebook and pen and pop in those earbuds and let's go get it. Okay, so firstly, let's have a quick look at why December is so overwhelming for so many of us. You're not imagining it. December is just heavier. And part of it is because this month brings more to-do lists, way more expectations, more emotional labor, more family triggers, definitely more financial pressure, more social commitments, and also less sunlight, less rest, and shorter days. So we have less time to get things done. And for us who are in midlife, or especially those that are in the sandwich generation, we are often the emotional center of gravity for our entire family. The chef, the planner, the organizer, the fixer, the gift giver, the rapper, the peacekeeper, and sometimes even the therapist. Let's face it, more often than not. And that's a lot. And our nervous systems weren't designed for this constant pressure. So if you've been feeling drained, resentful, a little snappy, or tired, nothing is wrong with you. Your system is just signaling to you that it's time to do something different. So let's create a gentler, a calmer December and help bring some of the joy back into the holiday season. So it's not only about overwhelm or perfection. Because nobody cares if Christmas is perfect. What they do care about is that you are present. And let's face it, when we're overwhelmed and overtired and overstressed, we're not present, and it's harder to actually give that to our families and our friends. So let's make a new holiday mantra. Simple, satisfying, and joyful. So instead of doing it all and being everything for everyone, or keeping up traditions that you've maybe outgrown or don't serve you anymore, or overloading our schedule to the point that we just feel way too much pressure. Let's try this instead. Ask yourself these questions. Just pause and say, does this need to be done? Does it need to be done by me? Or does it need to be done in this way? How could we simplify it? Or let it go all together. But here's the truth. This is your December, and you get to decide what stays and what goes. So today I'm going to give you five practical tips to help you reclaim this season and create a month filled with more presence and less pressure. Let's dive in. Number one, let go of traditions that don't serve you anymore. You are not obligated to keep the traditions that that drain you and don't feel good. I mean, let's face it, who we were twenty years ago is not who we are now. And as our families grow and evolve, we need to grow and evolve with them. And the whole purpose of a cool tradition is to add your personal touch to it. So maybe you can let some things go, add something of your own to it, and create a whole new dynamic. What made sense when your kids were little or when your family looked different or when you had more energy might not make sense anymore. So here's a practical starting point. Make a list of the holiday traditions that you usually participate in. Put a star next to the ones that actually bring you joy. And then put a question mark next to the ones that feel heavy, outdated, or stressful. And cross out altogether the ones that just feel like a burden. Then ask yourself, does this tradition nourish me? Does it fit my life right now? Would the holidays still be meaningful without it? If the answer is no, give yourself permission to let it go, modify it, or replace it with something simpler. Letting go of a tradition isn't losing something, it's creating space for something that fits who you are today. Instead of the big Christmas Eve meal switched to takeout in a movie, or instead of buying matching pajamas for everyone, pick a favorite blanket and call it cozy night. Or instead of making a massive Christmas light display outside, just hang one wreath and declare minimalism is chic. That would really feel good. I'll give you an example of a tradition that happened in my family. All my life we've always done the turkey on Christmas Day. And one year I just decided to cook the turkey on Christmas Eve. Because our tree is already up and we don't do that on Christmas Eve. So we made our turkey dinner on Christmas Eve, sat down, had a meal, and then just did a quick cleanup and played some games. And then in the morning, when we got up to have Christmas Day, everybody could just relax and stain their pajamas if they wanted to, eat a turkey sandwich, or we would just reheat some leftovers. And it just made the whole vibe of Christmas Day just that much more relaxing. And I loved it. So it's a tradition that I kind of added to our family. And sometimes we do it that way and sometimes we do it a bit differently. But that's what I'm trying to say is give yourself the option to change it up a little bit because it really feels good. Let me tell you another story. One year after I got divorced, uh my boys would have both been about mid-twenties, and they both lived about three and a half hours away from me. And my one son was working at a restaurant at the time, and their restaurant actually did a beautiful steak dinner for the homeless in the downtown of their city. And my son said to me, It happened on Christmas Eve, and he said, Mom, that really matters to me. I know we're supposed to be up there with you, but I really want to stay here and participate in this. And I said, Absolutely, you should do that. So they did, and by the time they were finished with the dinner and everything, and drove up to my house, it was probably between 9 30 or 10 PM. And I had a whole bunch of chakutery out and I had a fire going in the fireplace when they got there. So we sat in the living room and just munched and drank some wine and had a lot of laughs and just it was cozy and lovely. And then I looked at the clock and I said, You know what, guys? It's actually Christmas. It was after twelve, and I said, Do you want to do something crazy? Let's do Christmas right now. And they were like, What? Are you crazy? It's like midnight. And I said, I know, why not? We can do whatever we want. So we did. We opened our stockings, we exchanged presents, and we sat up laughing and giggling until about 2 AM. And for the first time in a long time, it really just felt like we were the three musketeers again. And to this day, that is still one of my favorite Christmas memories. Because Christmas Day, I said to them, just sleep, sleep in. Whenever you get up, you get up. No hurry to be up and at it for a quick early morning Christmas presents, because we'd already done that. So we all slept in, got up to a beautiful sunny day, went for a gorgeous walk, and the whole day just had a very different vibe. But it was still awesome, different, but awesome. So we encourage you to find a way to maybe shake something up this year that just feels delicious to you. Number two, simplify your to-do list until it's actually doable. You definitely don't need a holiday to-do list that requires like a project manager and a caffeine IV drip because December's to-do list tends to explode and we let everything feel urgent. But here's the secret there's very little that is truly urgent. So just make yourself a list. Write down everything you think you need to do, and then cut your list in half. Or delegate to somebody that can maybe take the task on. If your kids are growing up, or maybe they're young adults, maybe it's their turn to take something off the plate and help to make Christmas a success also. It doesn't have to fall all on your shoulders. Then cross off another twenty-five percent. And whatever is left on your list, just simplify it. So does this have to be done at all? Does this have to be done by me? Or does it have to be done this way? Or who could do it instead? That's a great question. And you'll be amazed at how many things fall into the no, I can probably let that go category. Maybe it's buying fewer gifts, or maybe you bake one thing instead of eight, and you do a cookie swap with your friends where everybody makes maybe four batches of one thing and you do a trade, so you don't have to do it all. Maybe you use gift bags instead of wrapping paper. And maybe we let go of the perfect holiday decor illusion. Because you know what? Good enough is still gorgeous. A shorter to-do list makes space for things that actually matter to you, like rest, connection, and sanity. Number three, wear fewer hats. Delegate wherever you can. So just because you can do everything, it doesn't mean that you should or you have to. We often carry all of the weight of the holiday season on our own, and sometimes we have taken that all on ourselves, and it's not necessary. You don't have to be the chef, the shopper, the decorator, the event planner, the host, or hostess, or the wrapper of all the gifts, give other people a job or two, or maybe ten. Let your kids wrap the gifts. Ask your guests to participate in the holiday meal and bring a dish. Maybe someone else can buy the teacher gifts this year. Or maybe you can ask your partner to handle just three things. If someone says to you, let me know how I can help, don't say, Oh no, it's okay, I've got it. Because truthfully, it's nice to say, Awesome, I could really use your help. And it's not often that we allow ourselves to feel like we can ask for help. So if someone offers, just be gracious and say, Yes, please. Delegating does not mean you are dropping the ball. It means you're refusing to juggle everything while balancing on one foot. Number four, spend less and create more. More joy does not require more money. Often our spending in December is driven by emotion or guilt, comparison, tradition, or expectation. And sometimes we just want to create magic. But magic doesn't come from more expensive gifts or more money. It comes from intention, presence, connection, and simplicity. So maybe you set a budget and you stick to it, or you do a family gift exchange, or you choose experiences instead of things. Or maybe you focus on memory gifts, maybe it's a letter or a framed photo or a shared outing. I don't know about you, but for me, when I have to buy out of obligation, it takes the joy out of it for me. I like to make gifts wherever possible. But if that's not your jam, it's okay to say, hey, let's all draw a name this year, and just buy one gift for the person on your list. Simpl, easier, and way more affordable. The gifts people remember are rarely the ones that cost the most. It's usually the things that come from thoughtful, personal, or meaningful moments. Number five, manage expectations, yours and everyone else's. Expectations for a perfect holiday season are often the biggest source of stress that we have to tackle. And it's not even something that we necessarily even realize is happening to us. So ask yourself, what are my expectations for this month? What do I want to see happen? Are these realistic with where I'm at in my life and with the other things that are on my plate right now? And what are the expectations that I'm carrying for this season that actually don't even belong to me? Then release the ones that just feel heavy. Let people know ahead of time what you can and will and will not be hosting. Communicate boundaries with warmth and love. If you just say things like, I'm keeping it really simple this year, you can give yourself permission to show up imperfectly and to enjoy every moment without having to feel like you have to do it all. Let's take the performance out of this season, because it's not about perfection and it's not about keeping every tradition we've ever had alive, just because we always have. I'd love for this season for you to be about how you feel, not only inside your body, but inside your home and inside your spirit, and in your relationships. The more you give yourself permission to simplify, to delegate, to let go, to spend less, and to manage your expectations, the freer you will become to enjoy the holidays today and long after they've passed. Thanks so much for being with me today. I wish you a peaceful December, and I'd love to hear from you as to how you decided to simplify your December. So drop me a comment on Instagram or on Facebook. I love to hear from you, and I read every comment. I hope you loved today's episode. I hope it inspired you or motivated you in some way to keep going and create your very best life. If you did, would you stop and take five minutes to leave me a review on Apple Podcasts? It's the best way for me to know that you're enjoying the show and it helps other listeners find us as well. And while you're at it, head over to lifeisdelicious.ca and sign up for email updates so you'll get notified every time a new episode drops. And I'll send you a free copy of my ebook, The Midlife Manifesto, inspiring strategies for mastering the eight most important areas of your life. Sign up today at lifeisdelicious.ca. And if no one has told you today, there's not one person on this planet that is exactly like you. And the world is a better place because you're here. So thank you for being here. I'll be back next week, and I hope you'll join me right here on Life is Delicious.