Helpful Tips for Dealing with A Divorce During the Holidays
Surviving the holidays during a divorce can be rough. Your first instinct may be to isolate yourself and deal with your emotional anguish all alone. Stemming from this, it’s best to enlist the support of your loved ones as well as seek legal guidance from a trusted divorce attorney.
You need to keep moving forward and find ways to stay positive during the holidays while your divorce matter is continuing or is about to begin. This is especially true if there are kids involved. Working with a compassionate divorce attorney that understands what you are going through can take some despondency or bitterness out of the situation.
Be Prepared and Don’t Sweat It
Holidays can be stressful with all the running around, buying gifts, preparing meals, and doing the dozen other chores. While you should stay busy, you don’t want to take on any added stress. Think about your regular routine and the things that you do. Think about the way in which you want to do things now that you don’t have the same family traditions.
Do you want to go out? Get a cake? Throw a party? Do you have a parenting plan in place for the holidays? It can be challenging to make proper arrangements if the divorce decree hasn’t been finalized. You need to accept that things will be less than perfect. They will be different, which is acceptable. This will reduce stress and help you feel more at ease.
Get Plenty of Rest and Exercise
Holidays are in general tiresome for people. You need to relax and allow your body time to catch up. Holidays are known for potlucks, mixers, and a number of other things. You need to take good care of yourself and have at least 8 hours of sleep at night. You also need to focus on your physical health. Getting plenty of exercise helps with mental health and allows the mind to stay refreshed.
You can join adult yoga, boxing, Zumba class, martial arts, or anything else that catches your fancy. The mind becomes clearer with exercise. The body benefits from exercising as well.
You feel better about a situation when your body is healthier and stronger. Mental health is vital during the divorce process. You don’t want to stay bottled up or feel down.
Exercising and adequate rest rejuvenate the mind and the body. You can do something simple as signing up with a local gym or putting on those sneakers and taking a run around the block. Finding an exercise buddy will help ease the pressure of loneliness. Remember, your goal is not to lose weight, but form good habits which ensure a healthy mind, body, and soul.
Create New Routines and Cherish Memories
Old routines may not work well during a divorce when the world around you is making giant flips. It’s easier to create new memories when you don’t stick to the old schedule.
Deviate slightly from old routines if you have kids. In most cases, spouses, and children both notice the breakdown of routines when they realize the marriage is not working. Think of creating new memories with your child. Form happy and fun memories rather than sticking to old family traditions.
Don’t Stay Alone
You may want to curl up and go back to bed. But this is not the time to stay alone. You should remain in touch with all those people that are supportive. It’s natural to lose a few friends along the way, especially if you and your ex shared friend circles. Join a local club if you don’t have a lot of friends or are new in town.
You can choose between cooking classes, fitness clubs, book clubs, and more. Family and neighbors can be excellent support systems as well. They can help you with the logistics of getting divorced, such as a doctor’s appointment or babysitting the kids.
Pamper Yourself
It can be easy to forget yourself if you are stressing about the divorce. Holidays especially make people forget about themselves in an effort to do more for others.
Based on this, you can do something nice for yourself if you are having a difficult time. Go out to dinner with a friend or get a massage. You will be amazed at the therapeutic benefits of a bubble bath. The best things don’t cost a lot of money.
Plan the Conversation
In most cases, the divorce is not so much the problem as the unwanted opinion of others. Friends and family mean well, but they can also prove to be a constant reminder of how things were. Consider how much you really want to share. You may assume that what you say to them will find its way back to your ex-spouse, especially if you have children. Moreover, this may not always be the case.
Get Legal Support from a Dedicated Divorce Attorney in Auburn, AL
The compassionate family law attorneys at the Alsobrook Law Group can help you whether you are contemplating a divorce or are already going through divorce proceedings. The holidays can be less stressful when you know you have solid support from a trusted legal team. Call 334-360-9534 or write to us online to schedule your free and confidential consultation with us today.
