A Stress-Less Holiday Guide: Natural Solutions for Calm, Joy & Boundaries
The holidays are filled with magic… and also pressure, noise, expectations, endless to-do lists, travel, family dynamics, and sugar everywhere you turn. It’s a lot. And while this season is meant to feel joyful, it often leaves people overstimulated, exhausted, or emotionally drained. That’s why creating a stress-less holiday plan is essential — not only for your sanity, but for your health.
A peaceful holiday isn’t about doing everything perfectly. It’s about supporting your nervous system, honoring your bandwidth, and choosing simple routines that bring you back to center. This guide shares natural stress-relief tools, healthy boundaries, essential oil support, and quick resets you can use all December long.
UNDERSTANDING HOLIDAY STRESS
Even though this is “the most wonderful time of the year,” your body experiences the holidays differently. Between cold weather, disrupted routines, extra sugar, more social gatherings, financial pressure, and family expectations, your cortisol levels tend to rise, sometimes sharply.
Signs of excess holiday stress include:
- Feeling overwhelmed or overstimulated
- Brain fog or forgetfulness
- Irritability
- Trouble sleeping
- Emotional eating
- Difficulty relaxing even when you have downtime
Your nervous system simply needs support — not judgment, not shame, not pressure to keep up. Just support.
NATURAL SOLUTIONS TO CREATE CALM & JOY
Use Essential Oils to Regulate Stress & Emotions
Aromatherapy works directly with your limbic system (the emotional center of the brain) making it one of the fastest ways to shift your mental and emotional state.
Best essential oils for holiday calm:
- Adaptive®: For overwhelm, anxiousness, and sensory overload
- Balance®: For grounding and emotional steadiness
- Frankincense: For peace, clarity, and spiritual connection
- Wild Orange: For joy, energy, and emotional resilience
A simple ritual:
Place a drop of Adaptive or Balance on your wrists, breathe deeply for 10 seconds, and feel your shoulders drop instantly.
Add a 2-Minute Stress Reset to Your Day
This season is busy — but stress relief doesn’t have to take long.
How to do it:
- Place one hand on your chest and one on your belly.
- Inhale for 4 seconds, exhale for 6.
- Whisper, “I can do this slowly.”
*Add Frankincense to intensify the calming effect.
This activates your parasympathetic nervous system, helping you regulate cortisol in real time.
SUPPORT YOUR BODY DURING HOLIDAY CHAOS
Eat Warm, Grounding Foods
Winter foods support your digestion, stabilize mood, and help reduce the blood sugar rollercoaster that worsens stress. Think soups, stews, roasted vegetables, herbal teas, and protein-rich snacks.
Use Supplements that Strengthen your Stress Response
Your body needs extra support during full schedules and disrupted routines. Some favorites include:
- Adaptiv® Calming Blend Capsules that supports cognitive function, emotional balance, and mood + promotes positive feelings and mental well-being.
- DDR Prime® Cellular Complex for cellular & inflammation support + supports a healthy response to free radicals and oxidative stress.
- Frankincense Boswellic Acid Complex for cellular health & renewal, healthy inflammatory responses, protects against oxidative stress + it has a positive effect on the nervous system.
- Foundation Wellness Bundle which includes VMG+, a redefined daily multivitamin (that you drink), EO Mega+, a fish oil that isn’t fishy, and PB Restore, a pre- pro- and post-biotic that are all designed for foundational nutrient support
When your body is nourished, your mind is steadier.
HOLIDAY BOUNDARIES
The secret to protecting your peace is to set boundaries. Now keep in mind, setting holiday boundaries doesn't make you “difficult” — it makes you healthy.
A few supportive boundary ideas:
- Schedule white space into your week. Don’t fill every night.
- Say, “We’re keeping this year simple” when declining invitations.
- Protect slow mornings to reduce emotional overload.
- Limit sugar + alcohol if they affect your mood or sleep.
- Give yourself permission to leave early, drive separately, or take breaks.
Healthy boundaries create space for joy.
CREATE A CALM & GROUNDED HOME
When your environment is peaceful, your nervous system feels safe.
Diffuse Holiday Blends that Soothe + Uplift: You can make your own using your favorite aromas, try a pre-made blend like Holiday Peace and Holiday Joy (unfortunately these are only sold seasonally and have already sold out for 2025), so perhaps you can pick from one of these tried-and-true holiday diffuser blends.
Here are a few simple, grounding activities similar to decluttering one small space, as I talked about in the
Winter Wellness Reset, that’s perfect for creating a calm, cozy, energetically lighter home for the holidays:
Wipe Down One “High-Touch” Surface: Choose something like a nightstand, kitchen counter corner, or bathroom sink. A quick reset of just one spot instantly shifts the energy of the room. Bonus: Use a natural cleaner, like
doTERRA abode, for a fresh, uplifting scent.
Create a Mini Sanctuary: Pick a single area—your bedside table, a reading nook, or your favorite chair—and make it peaceful. Add: a cozy blanket, a candle (non-toxic, of course!), a diffuser blend, or your gratitude journal. This tiny reset creates a huge emotional lift.
Five-Minute Paper Sweep: Grab all stray papers, mail, receipts, or notes into one folder or basket. No sorting required yet—just clearing the surfaces is grounding and calming.
Refresh Your Entryway: This is the first energy you step into every day. Hang up coats, shake out a mat, add a little greenery, or diffuse in that space as it sets the tone for the whole home.
Open a Window for One Minute: Just 60 seconds clears stagnant air and instantly resets the energy.
A stress-less holiday is possible! You don’t have to move through December in survival mode. With small, intentional shifts — a calming oil, a 2-minute reset, a nourishing meal, a simple boundary — you can create a holiday season that feels peaceful, joyful, and deeply supportive.
If you’d love personalized emotional-wellness recommendations or want help choosing natural solutions to get you through the holidays,
I’m here for you anytime.
xoDanette