As many of you know and have experienced, the holidays can
be both a blessing and a curse if you are living with and loving someone with
ADHD. The late nights, crowded shopping
malls, extra things on “to do” lists, parties, strangers, traveling, sweets,
rich dinners, greasy take out, getting out of routine and, of course taking
some actual time off, can lead to elevated levels of anxiety, meltdowns and
frustration…and that’s from your neurotypical family members! Seriously though,
all the above can amplify and wear out your family members with ADHD and
yourself which is often an explosive combination. This was us for a very long
time. I have a tough time with the
holidays to begin with, probably because of working retail for years and seeing
the awful side of people. Then throw in
dealing with our son’s anxiety and I’m just done with this whole holiday cheer
thing. This year though we decided to try to do things differently. We got
really organized and took advantage of online shopping and Black Friday/Cyber
Monday deals. Thus, reducing our ventures into the unholy world of the mall at Christmas
season. Now that our son is old enough to stay home by himself, he too has been
able to avoid unnecessary trips into crowded and hot stores that he has no
interest in being in. We are trying to plan outings around dinner to avoid
eating out. Not only am I still on my weight loss journey, but too much take
out is just never a good thing. We get up and out earlier on weekends when we
are all more rested, and places are less crowded. We also make shorter trips
more often, instead of trying to do everything in one go. It means I must
really keep on top of my lists and it’s a bit more inconvenient, but it’s
making the over all experience much better for everyone. I can also take each
child separately and tackle their shopping lists too, while spending a little
one-on-one time with each of them.
What are some of your tips for getting ready for the
holidays?
