By Khadijah Booth Watkins, Associate Director and Gene Beresin, Executive Director

Posted in: Multimedia, Podcast

Topics: Healthy Living, Stress

Families have felt tremendous stress over the past two years due to the pandemic. Still, for many, this is a special time of year that we fantasize about and look forward to, so it’s not healthy to go into the holiday season and the school winter break at this heightened state of stress and duress.

** Tune in below, or search for “Shrinking It Down” wherever you get your podcasts. **

Perhaps you’re anxious about spending time with loved ones in a safe way, or you’ve been fighting about house rules with your college student who is home from school. This time of year may be challenging for you because it awakens traumas from your past. Or maybe you just want to give your child the emotional break and fun they need, but it’s so hard to do that when you can’t unwind, yourself.

Today, Gene and Khadijah share strategies to help you feel less overwhelmed this season, and wind down a bit leading up to the new year. Plus, they share some of the favorite songs they’ve been sharing with each other. Take a moment to tune in so you can draw more joy from the season. You deserve it!

Thank you for joining in this conversation. Have a question or comment? Write to us!

Media List

(follow along with the conversation)

• Coping With Holiday Stress: 11 Parenting Tips (MGH Clay Center)
• A crisis of childhood grief (Vox)
• AAP, AACAP, CHA declare national emergency in children’s mental health (American Academy of Pediatrics)
• Surgeon General Advisory Raises Alarm on Youth Mental Health (U.S. News)
• Getting to the Finish Line: Will You Choose Endurance or Resilience? (MGH Clay Center)
• 12 Responsibilities For Kids That Make Them Feel Special, According to Experts (Romper)
• 4 ways to create and share music playlists with friends and family (Kim Komando)
• How to Preserve and Share Grandma’s Recipes (WIRED)
• Turning to Gratitude – “What song…?” clip (YouTube – MGH Clay Center)
• Coping With Grief and Loss During COVID-19 (MGH Clay Center)
• Supporting Your Child In the Face of Trauma (Project TEACH)
• What we know about the victims of the Michigan school shooting (CBS News)
• Protecting Youth Mental Health: The U.S. Surgeon General’s Advisory (U.S. Department of Health and Human Services
• A Parent & Caregiver Resource – Shining Light on Mental Health Through Education (YouTube – MGH Clay Center)

 

Episode produced by Sara Rattigan

Music by Gene Beresin