When You Get a Flare During the Holidays

Everything comes to a screeching halt when I get a flare. The pain and the fatigue bring it all to a stop. On a random week, this would be an inconvenience, but during the holidays, it’s depressing. I want to spend time with the family and enjoying “the most wonderful time of year.”

I’ve learned over the years that I can’t push through it. I have to shift my focus exclusively to healing. The longer I delay this shift, the longer it takes to get out of it. It doesn’t make it easier as someone who loves being active, but I’ve learned to respect my body and its need to heal.

These are my go-to strategies to help me recover out of a flare.

Clear the deck

It seems obvious, but the very first thing I do is look at my calendar and eliminate everything possible. If it’s not absolutely essential, it gets bumped and even if something is essential, I explore the option of rescheduling to a later date.

This, of course, can be easier said than done around the holidays, but clearing out the less important events means that I have a greater chance of being able to show up properly for the events that are most meaningful. Just knowing that I have less obligations on my calendar enables me to rest with a more peaceful mind.

Rest... hard

Next come the comfy clothes, and typically, the couch or my bed... but absolutely, positively no phone. If I have my phone by my side, I’ll be scrolling through Instagram and not receiving the full rest that my body needs.

This is where the holidays do come in handy – hello, Hallmark Channel! It was actually last November and December that I had a major setback with energy, and the fact that I had holiday movies to watch changed everything.

Fast

Although this doesn’t work for everyone, I find a 24-hour bone broth fast to be helpful to reset my body. I make it in the crockpot, so there’s virtually no energy needed to cook, but once it’s ready, the house smells amazing and I have a pot of nourishing broth to enjoy.

I do need to be really mindful with the fast though, because if I extend it past 24 hours or try to jump back into too much activity too soon, it can make the fatigue worse. But if I’m resting well and breaking the fast after 24 hours with a wholesome meal, it can give my digestive system a rest (conserving energy) and be both nourishing and comforting to my body and soul.

If I fully commit to these three steps, I’m far more likely to calm the flare and reset my body. Of course, I need to ease my transition back into the holiday routine, but the flares are often humbling enough that returning to the holiday festivities with a more mindful approach happens naturally.

How do you best manage a flare during the holidays?