Holiday Wellbeing
Simple Ways for Federal Employees to Stay Balanced This Season
The holiday season often brings a blend of celebration, connection, and welcome moments of joy. It can also bring full calendars, long workdays, disrupted routines, and the quiet pressure to keep pace with everything happening around us. For many federal employees, December is about managing everything that needs to be done while staving off fatigue from the previous 11 months as the year winds down.
In a season that can feel both energizing and overwhelming, caring for your wellbeing doesn’t need to be elaborate. In fact, it’s usually the small regular practices that help us breathe a little easier, move a little more, and create space amidst the chaos.
Small Reset Moments That Make a Big Difference
If you think you don’t have time to improve your daily wellbeing, think again. Some of the most effective resets fit easily into the workday.
Consider reset moments such as:
- Taking three slow, intentional breaths with a longer exhale to ease tension.
- Doing a 60-second stretch: rolling your shoulders, lifting your arms overhead, or gently rotating your neck.
- Standing for the first minute of your next email to break up long periods of sitting.
- Briefly changing your scenery: stepping to a window or a quiet corner to give both your eyes and your brain a break.
These small pauses sustain rather than disrupt productivity, especially during a month marked by deadlines and competing priorities.
Move Gently, Especially After Heavier Meals
Find your energy dragging during the holidays? Holiday treats and social gatherings often encourage more indulgence than usual. Engaging in easy movement can ease digestion, boost energy, and counteract muscle tension.
Consider easy ways to move such as:
- Taking a three- to five-minute loop around the hallways after lunch.
- Doing calf raises or gentle twists while waiting for coffee or warming leftovers.
- Taking a short, post-meal walk – even if it’s just around the block or the parking lot.
The best part is there’s no equipment required! All you have to do is find your motivation. Don’t think of it as exercise. Instead, look at it as a way to minimize the gap between your usual, on-the-go routine and the singular, slower moment you’re in.
Protecting Your Energy Through Boundaries
December brings more invitations, expectations, and unspoken pressure to socialize. Work spills into personal time and extra commitments can quickly overcrowd the month.
Consider boundary-setting practices such as:
- Identifying your top priorities early, both at work and at home.
- Having brief, expectation-setting conversations with your team ahead of the end-of-year push.
- Giving yourself permission to say “no”, or “not this year”, when your schedule is full.
- Cutting corners where needed, like bringing store-bought food to the office potluck.
Boundaries aren’t always about placing restrictions — they can also preserve your energy, so you’re present for what matters most. Your usual routines may slip, and that’s not failure – it’s seasonality. Giving yourself space and grace now creates room for what matters most, knowing that your steadier rhythms will return in the new year.
Creating Space for What Truly Matters
Amid full schedules and festive activities, finding time to engage in preferred pursuits will nurture all aspects of your wellbeing: physical, emotional, and intellectual.
Consider practices to help find balance such as:
- Choosing one daily, non-negotiable activity that supports you, such as enjoying a quiet morning drink, a few minutes of fresh air, or your favorite playlist.
- Reaching out to someone who grounds you or makes you laugh.
- Letting go of traditions that no longer fit and embracing ones that feel more meaningful to who you are now.
These small choices can help shift the season from obligation to intention.
A Season for Care
Federal employees spend the year supporting others. These last few weeks offer the opportunity to turn inward, carry that care into the new year, and build both into your everyday routines.
Bottom line: Offer yourself the same space and grace you extend to others by allowing your routines to shift, your energy to ebb and flow, and your pace to soften as the year comes to a close. That’s how we water the roots of our wellbeing and help it flourish throughout the year.
About the Authors
About the Authors
