This time of year can be tough when you’re single. It can feel like you’re surrounded by couples cosying up and planning their festivities together whilst you’re heading home to spend another Christmas back in your childhood bedroom.
But fear not… there are ways to navigate Christmas and enjoy it to its full!
1. Your mindset
Imagine you KNEW this was the last Christmas you’d be spending single. That from next year, you’ll have to plan around another person’s (and family’s) Christmas as well, splitting your time and your focus. What would you be doing to make the most out of this Christmas?
Enjoying exclusive time with your friends and family? Booking that festive treat you always wanted to do? This is the year to do it and savour it completely.
Accepting that you are where you are this Christmas, and embracing all that the season still has to offer is key. The Christmas before I met Mr Kat, I woke up alone in Dubai - and spent my first few hours sat in bed watching Bridget Jones! This may sound depressing to some, but instead I really enjoyed it for what is was - a treat to have chocolate for breakfast, a fun morning skyping family and enjoying getting ready to spend the day with friends.
I tried not to compare it to other Christmasses, whether my own or other peoples and instead cherished it for what it was - I knew I wouldn’t spend a Christmas like that again!
A simple shift in mindset will take you a long, long, way to enjoying Christmas.
2. Maximising festivities
There are so many fun, amazing things going on at this time of year. Whether that’s Christmas markets, concerts, or parties. Don’t mope that you can’t enjoy these with a partner - grab some friends and go and make the most of them anyway!
Try your hand at something new - whether that’s building a gingerbread house or going ice-skating. Having fun, being active and getting creative are all great ways to boost your mood and make the most of the season.
If you’re disappointed to go to your Christmas party alone, look at the benefits - you get to hang out with who you want and stay as late as you want without having to look after your plus one.
Be grateful for, and embrace, everything that IS going on, rather than focusing on what it is not.
3. Tactical interventions
The dreaded “anybody on the scene?” question at Christmas catch-ups and family gatherings can be frustrating at best, tear-provoking at worst.
If you’re getting wound up about this already, get a trusted friend or family member to give out a warning in advance or be ready to rescue you. Tell them how you feel and ask them to tell others to be tactful about such questions, or if they see you stuck in that situation, to swoop in and rescue you.
There’s no need to spend so much time worrying about this - when a few simple steps can avoid it altogether!
4. Looking after yourself
This is often a period of late nights, plentiful drinks and a lot of sugar. All of these can wreck havoc on your body, and when you’re not feeling your best physically, it’s easy for your mind to spiral downwards as well.
Avoid this by making sure you are looking after your physical and emotional health. Plan enough things with friends to keep you busy and those happy hormones pumping - but also plan for some proper downtime. You can combine both with some chilled Christmas movie nights with friends as well!
Choose one or two events you want to party harder at, and then go easier on the rest. Start on the healthy food, drink lots of water, and plan an exercise routine that’s going to work with your schedule and location - lots of walks and fun activities can be a great antidote to late nights and big meals.
5. Doing it your way
There’s often high expectations to spend Christmas a certain way - and a lot of movies that anchor in to that - but the truth is, everyone has their own traditions. You’re an adult. You get to choose yours.
Decide how you want to spend your time, energy and focus this Christmas. Concentrate on the things that will light you, and those you love most, up.
Remember that the grass is not always greener. Being in a relationship does not resolve all of life’s problems. There will be plenty of people in a relationship struggling with other demons this Christmas - who would love to be having your Christmas.
Having a plan for 2020 can also be a great positive boost to see you through the festive period.
Focus on the things that are important to you, don’t be afraid to say no to things that don’t feel you with joy. And remember to be grateful for all that you have!
Want to change your love life for good?
If you’d like to spend this to be the last Christmas that you spend alone, I’ve got just the thing for you!! How would you like to enjoy this Christmas season knowing that things are about to turnaround in 2020? That there’s a way that you can make the key switch from dating disasters to loving, long-term relationships? That’s exactly why I created my Finding your Dream Partner program for January 2020.
Find out exactly what went wrong in the past, what changes you need to make for the future and how to attract in your dream partner. All in an intimate group setting over four weeks. AND for the first three to sign-up, you’ll get a BONUS one-on-one coaching session with me as well as access to the full program. If that wasn’t incentive enough, there is also early-bird pricing until the 24th December - so make sure you sign up to get an amazing discounted price!