Let’s just skip the holidays this year

by Chaplain Julia Rajtar, MAPS, BCC

This is a common refrain expressed by the bereaved as the holidays approach. When your heart is broken, you don’t have the energy or desire to be happy or pretend to be happy around others. Just thinking about the holiday can generate anxiety, which can lead one to a halt, uncertain about how to proceed forward.  The holiday season can intensify our sense of loss, affecting the mind, body, and heart. 

Bakken-Young is hosting a free webinar: Mindful Holidays: Navigating Grief with Compassion and Presence.  This webinar will provide resources to approach the holiday season with a mindful heart, ensuring that you find moments of peace and connection amidst the waves of grief. There are many emotional challenges that come with anticipating the holiday. We will integrate mindfulness into the holiday experience along with using a worksheet to help plan for the winter holiday season, ensuring a personalized guide to navigate these tough times. Approaching these moments with compassion and creating a practice for self-care will become GPS tools to navigate the route leading toward and celebrating the holidays.

Heather Stang will be leading our webinar. Her work is grounded in a heartfelt desire to relieve suffering and in honor of her Uncle Doug, who died by suicide when she was a child. Heather holds a master’s degree in Thanatology from Hood College and is a Certified Yoga Therapist in the Phoenix Rising tradition. Learn more about Heather and her upcoming workshops at mindfulnessandgrief.com.

To Register: Mindful Holidays: Navigating Grief with Compassion and Presence