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Description

 As soon as December rolls around, our culture begins to promote this feeling of togetherness and celebration. We are flooded with messages of the importance of family and friends and how we should be joyous and grateful. But what happens when the holidays bring about a sense of anxiety, stress, and pain rather than the joy we are told we should be feeling?

In today’s episode we will be discussing how we can deal with the pressure to be around others, and how we can plan ahead for events and for gatherings with friends and family.

Topics/Triggers:
The new energy that comes with the changing of the seasons and the dark moon phase of the year
How to deal with heightened sensitivities around your triggers that this time of year brings
The 2 core skills of Radical Acceptance and Mindfulness
How Radical Acceptance can help ground us in the moment by allowing us to be in the present moment, exactly as it is, without judgement.
How Mindfulness can help ground us, and how practicing mindfulness each day will make it easier to allow emotional thoughts to come and go, without becoming too attached to a feeling, thought, memory, or emotion. (https://www.tarabrach.com)
Why you need to give yourself permission to leave any and all events that you need to remove yourself from
The value of boundaries to family and relationships, and how we must be okay with enforcing those boundaries.
Realizing that our time & energy is a finite resource that we must decide how to use
Understanding that in a season of giving, you must give yourself the gift of prioritizing your needs, your self care, and the other basic steps to keeping ourselves functioning each and every day. (For tips on how to soothe yourself, listen to the Skill Spotlight on Self-Soothing episode https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/initiated-survivor/id1585757429?i=1000540739123)
Why you should bring private distractions to events to help distract you if things get to be too overwhelming in the moment
Why you should try to connect with those who understand what it means to be a survivor during this time of year

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If you or anyone you know is suffering through trauma contact the National Sexual Assault hotline at 1-800-656-4673 or online for 24/7 support. (This podcast is not a replacement for psychotherapy or mental health care. You can obtain a referral for mental health care provider from your primary care physician, or search on Psychology Today’s Find a Therapist directory)

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