10 Ways to Deal with the Post Holiday Blues Without Stimulants

Now that the holiday stress is over and you are recovering from a variety of activities, you might start to feel the post holiday blues. This is when being alone and the season start to get to you. The period after the holidays can be just as devastatingly stressful as the holidays can. According to the National Institute on Drug Abuse, stress is one of the number one causes of drug abuse and relapse. There are however thing that you can do to help alleviate some of this stress without turning to drugs.

1. Get Together with Friends and Family after the Holidays

Make plans to get together with your friends and family. You do not only have to only get together on the holidays, any time of year is a good time for to meet with friends and family.

2. Volunteer at a Local Agency

Volunteer work is satisfying and gets you out of your house. Sometimes volunteering helps you to get out with people and helps the community as well. You do not necessarily have to volunteer at a human agency, there are plenty of animal and other agencies that need your help.

3. Start a New Hobby that You Enjoy

Starting a new hobby particularly one you enjoy will help you beat the holiday blues without a stimulant. Hobbies help to distract and keep your mind off the let down of the holidays. The hobby has to be something you can do anytime and that you enjoy.

4. Do a Spring Cleaning in Winter

Cleaning is a relative term. After the Christmas season, you may have some clutter built up. Christmas gifts although welcome, they sometimes make more clutter. For every gift that you received you can get rid of something that you’ve had for a while. This is a great way to get rid of clutter and to keep busy.

5. Get Back into Your Routine

Getting back into the swing of things might be difficult but you need to understand that it is the best way to beat the post holiday blues. The structure and the routine will help you gain energy without using stimulants.

6. Get Out

By getting out with friends or even on your own, you give yourself something to do. One of the worst things that you can do immediately after the holidays is to stay at home especially if you are alone. Being out among people often gives you energy and purpose.

7. Exercise

Exercise releases dopamine, dopamine makes you feel better. It also gives you energy. Although that might seem contradictory, it is true.

8. Eat Right

Eating right especially when combined with exercise, can give you as much energy as many of the stimulants on the market. Certain foods have stimulant properties and when they are eaten regularly you do not suffer from either mild situational depression or lack of energy.

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9. Learn to Cook

By learning to cook, you give yourself something to do and you learn to eat food that is good for you and provides energy. By cooking the food yourself, you can ensure that only good ingredients go into it.

10. Find Treatment if you Need to

If you feel that you are going to turn to stimulants to beat the post holiday blues, then you need to find help. Call us at 800-605-6597 Who Answers?. We can find you the treatment that you need.