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19th December, 2023

How to Survive the Holiday Season

With Corrina Gordon-Barnes

Photo of Corrina Gordon-Barnes

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On this episode

The Christmas season can be a time of stress and disappointment, especially when our expectations don’t match up with reality. We can find ourselves dealing with difficult family members, feeling overwhelmed with work and family obligations, or experiencing a general sense of dissatisfaction.But there’s plenty we can do to make the festive period more enjoyable and less overwhelming.

This week, we’re revisiting a previous conversation on the podcast, with Corrina Gordon-Barnes. In her chat with Rachel, you’ll learn how to turn expected disappointments into a game of bingo, set realistic expectations, and exercise some self-compassion.

By taking proactive steps, we can create a more positive and fulfilling Christmas experience.

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About the guests

Corrina Gordon-Barnes photo

Reasons to listen

  • To learn strategies to cope with the expectations and negative experiences that come with the holiday season
  • To discover the concept of playing “Christmas Bingo” to approach disappointments with humour and acceptance
  • To gain insights on how to navigate triggering situations and avoid falling into familiar patterns of conflict

Episode highlights

00:03:59

Christmas disappointments

00:09:02

Christmas Bingo

00:13:30

What you can do to avoid disappointent

00:16:19

Playing out the old dances

00:21:33

Your zone of power

00:27:15

Lowering your expectations

00:39:20

Self-compassion in the face of disappointment

00:43:39

Hunt the Pony

00:44:51

Handling regret

00:49:22

Corrina’s top 3 tips

Episode transcript

[00:00:00] Rachel: You are another year older, but are you any wiser? As we’re coming up to the holiday season, I’m reflecting on last year and how I coped with all the expectations of Christmas, including some of the more negative expectations of irritation with certain members of my family. [00:00:15] Last year I had a convenient gout jail free card as I broken my ankle and was able to sneak off to the gym for some rehab while the rest of the family trudged around the lake in the cold and rain. But this year, I’m going to have…

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