Happy Holidays! Use Occupations to Balance Seasonal Stress
The holiday season is fast approaching with all its festive occupations like decorating the house, buying and wrapping presents and preparing and serving holiday meals. Between the additional time requirements, costs, travel and interactions with family members, this can be a particularly stressful time of year. Difficulties with getting around the house or community, remembering and managing multiple to-do lists, and feeling comfortable socializing for long periods of time can compound holiday stress. While some people experience a sense of deep engagement and enjoyment with holiday preparations and celebrations, others find the additional demands tiring and overwhelming. Many of us experience a variety of emotions, from deep joy to stress, during this busy time. No matter how you view the season, faculty in the Department of Occupational Therapy at the University of South Dakota have some advice to help reduce stress and enjoy your festive occupations this year.
Take a moment to think about your favorite holiday activities and identify what makes these moments enjoyable for you. This might include visiting friends and family, the smell of peppermint hot chocolate or memories associated with listening to songs from your childhood. Early in the season, map out the preparations that need to occur ahead of various celebrations or events. Using a calendar or planner to proactively schedule activities and tasks reduces the demand on your memory, especially during times of high emotion. This may involve scheduling a time to wrap presents ahead of a gift exchange or planning when to make appetizers ahead of an after-work party. Break larger occupations like decorating the house into smaller tasks that can be spread over time. Try to balance completing stressful tasks and fun activities across a week. If a large holiday gathering is planned for a Friday, consider scheduling quiet activities that you can complete independently the day or two before. Physically demanding occupations like hanging holiday lights or going shopping can be balanced with smaller activities like writing greeting cards.
You can also reduce stress during holiday preparations by avoiding multi-tasking. Evidence from the occupational therapy and cognitive psychology literature suggests that trying to engage in multiple activities at the same time results in worse performance and higher feelings of stress and anxiety. Use this as an opportunity to fully engage your senses and emotions in the event. Put on holiday music or a favorite movie while decorating the house or wrapping presents. For those who enjoy socializing, seek out small groups for wrapping or cookie decorating parties. Don’t forget to engage your other senses by enjoying the special tastes and smells of the holidays. Finally, be sure to schedule quiet moments for yourself to relax and recharge. Research has found that scheduling periodic breaks ahead of time provides greater stress reduction than waiting until you feel overwhelmed to take a break. Go for a walk, enjoy a holiday coffee, take a long bath or just take a moment to rest and remind yourself of the joy of the season.
Karen Hebert, Ph.D., OTR/L, is an assistant professor in the Department of Occupational Therapy at the University of South Dakota. She studies how working memory and cognitive processing influence the experience of positive and negative emotions during the completion of daily occupations, particularly among those with neurological and mental health conditions. Her favorite occupations include reading, swimming and traveling with her husband and two girls. Mackenzie Feldhacker, OTD, OTR/L, CLT-LANA, is an associate professor in the Department of Occupational Therapy at the University of South Dakota. Her interests are the scholarship of teaching and learning and the needs of individuals with neurological conditions, particularly Parkinson’s disease. Her favorite occupations include baking, spending time outdoors and playing games with her family. Follow The Prairie Doc® at www.prairiedoc.org FaceBook, Instagram, YouTube, and Tik Tok. Prairie Doc Programming includes On Call with the Prairie Doc®, a medical Q&A show (most Thursdays at 7pm on YouTube and streaming on Facebook), 2 podcasts, and a Radio program (on SDPB, Sundays at 6am and 1pm).
Wheat Scoop: Build a Family Tradition with Wheat
For the audio version, visit kswheat.com.
Craft, Bake & Build a Family Tradition with Wheat
The holiday season is a perfect time to slow down, connect with family and create lasting memories. This year, why not combine the joy of crafting with the warmth of holiday baking? From wheat-based crafts to festive recipes, EatWheat.org has everything you need to make this season special.
“Holiday craft decorations and shared baking experiences are wonderful ways to connect with loved ones,” said Marsha Boswell, Vice President of Communications for Kansas Wheat. “These activities aren’t just fun; they help build traditions that last a lifetime.”
Fun Wheat-Based Holiday Crafts
Get creative and make memories with these simple family-friendly wheat crafts:
Salt Dough Handprint Ornaments
Mix flour, salt and water, press in a handprint or footprint, bake until hardened and decorate. These ornaments become treasured keepsakes for years to come.
DIY Pasta Angel Ornaments
Use pasta shapes like rotini, penne or farfalle to build tiny angels. Paint or add glitter for a whimsical touch. Perfect for kids and adults alike.
Dog Biscuit Reindeer Ornaments
Decorate store-bought dog biscuits with pretzel antlers, candy noses and edible markers. Hang them on the tree and enjoy a treat for your furry friends after the holidays.
Gingerbread-Style Houses with Wheat Foods
Use graham crackers or store-bought kits and embellish with wheat-based foods like frosted mini-wheats or pretzel rods. Create edible displays the whole family will enjoy.
Holiday Recipes from EatWheat.org
Bring your family together in the kitchen with these festive wheat-based recipes:
Christmas Tree Cake Balls
Bite-sized holiday magic. Fun to make, delicious to eat and perfect for holiday parties or family gatherings.
Christmas Tree Pull-Apart Rolls
Cheese-filled rolls arranged in a festive Christmas Tree shape, soft, buttery and fun to pull apart. The perfect centerpiece for your holiday table.
Homemade Holiday Sugar Cookies
Cut out fun shapes, bake and decorate with icing for a creative family activity that doubles as a tasty treat.
Whole Wheat Chocolate Peppermint Drop Cookies
Delicious cookies with a hint of peppermint made with whole wheat flour for a festive wholesome twist.
Holiday Crunch Snack Mix
Whip up this crunchy sweet snack in just 10 minutes using only six ingredients. Perfect for gifting or holiday parties.
Cranberry Jalapeño Salsa Holiday Dip
A festive appetizer made with cranberry jalapeño salsa over cream cheese, served with assorted crackers. Guaranteed to be a crowd favorite.
Walnut Biscotti
Crunchy, sweet and ideal for gifting, enjoying with coffee or adding to a holiday dessert tray.
For more holiday recipes, explore EatWheat.org’s full recipe library.
Why Combine Crafts and Baking
Combining crafts and baking into your holiday celebrations creates a richer, more meaningful experience.
Crafts engage hands, hearts and imaginations, providing fun and bonding for all ages.
Baking fills the home with warmth and delicious aromas, creating comfort and joy.
Together they connect home, hearth and harvest, a reminder of the origins of our food and the joy of creating something with our own hands.
This holiday season, make your celebrations about more than decorations and gifts. Make them about creativity, warmth and shared traditions.
Rural loneliness
Depending on circumstances, rural living offers up many ways for folks to experience loneliness. In some cases, the remoteness of the farmstead can cause loneliness. In other cases, having the children grow up and leave home can cause loneliness for their parents. In other cases, the relentless hours of work can cause loneliness.
However, for some folk, they choose to move to the country to escape the stress of urban living.
Such was the case of two single lady retirees who were the best of urban friends. Both had been career women. Each had lived alone in an apartment in the big city for quite some time. When contemplating their retirement future, they decided that in retirement they’d buy an acreage, move to a quiet rural area, and live together to cut expenses.
So, that’s what they did. They bought 10 acres with a nice old farm house plenty big for them to share. On the farmstead they bought wuz a nice old-fashioned red tile chicken house.
After getting settled in, they came to a mutual decision to put the chicken house to good use and go into the egg-selling bizness.
They decided to buy 500 hens and 500 roosters to start their egg bizness. But, before they made their purchase, they visited the local ag extension agent, ol’ N. O. Wittall, for poultry advice.
When they told the agent their plan, he quickly said they’d seriously misjudged the number of roosters they’d need for 500 hens. He said, even 50 roosters would be plenty for that many hens.
That’s when the retirees chimed in together, “No. We’re going to buy 500 roosters because we’re experts on how it feels to be lonely.”
***
It’s been quite awhile since I’ve related an Ole and Sven joke. Since winter is just ahead for us all, this story is apt.
Ole and Lena had lived all their married lives on a little farm located on the Minnesota side of the state line with Iowa.
One day, Ole’s friend Sven, who wuz a county commissioner, stopped by and told Ole that he had something important to tell him.
Expecting really bad news, Ole’s plunked down in his recliner, not far from the blazing fireplace, and said, “Lay da’ bad news on me, Sven.”
Sven told Ole that surveyors doing advance work on state line highway improvements had found a monumental old surveying error. “They’ve confirmed that da’ original survey of the state line is off a hunert yards to the south,” Sven told a dispirited Ole. “The truth is dat all these years you and Lena just t’ought you were a’living in Minnesota. From now on, you’ll officially be living in Iowa.”
After the shocked Ole absorbed that news, he broke into a big smile. “Dat’s great news, Sven, I don’t t’ink Lena and me could a’stand a’living t’rough another tough Minnesota winter again.”
***
The health care system in the good ol’ U.S.A. is pretty much in a state of flux. The cost of health care and medicines is advancing much faster than the rate of inflation.
The recent experience of an elderly farmer proves the point. The guy went to his doctor for his annual checkup. When he left his doctor’s office, he wuz carrying a long list of prescription medicines that his doctor had prescribed.
So, the farmer went to his pharmacist to get all the prescriptions filled. His pharmacist looked the list over, turned to the farmer and said, “I have one quick question for you before I begin getting your meds. How do you want to arrange financing?”
***
My column last week about Brittany bird dogs that I’ve owned and hunted over, prompted a kindly Nebraska reader to volunteer his own dog story.
He told me that his first bird dog years ago was mixed breed — a “Cocker Scandal.”
***
I’ll shift to a little shop talk now. All summer and fall, my grandson and son-in-law have been working some weekends on a 28 x 36-foot shop/man-cave toward the back side of Damphewer Acres.
Although not finished, the finish line is coming into sight. The building is weatherized, insulated, electrified, heated, cooled, and paneled. I’ve even got a nice fescue lawn growing around it. What’s mainly left to do is put up the old barn tin wainscoting, and complete the bathroom.
The Man Cave is going to be really nice when it’s completed. My son-in-law, Harley Ryder, has a lot of shop tools that’s he’s going to move into the shop when it’s done. I’m anything but a handyman, but I’m still pretty good at hosting parties and card games. So, I’m guessing that’s about all I’ll do in the new Man Cave, and Harley will be the one who puts the tools to good use.
***
My wise words for the weedkare: “A lot of folks are like rocking chairs — a lot of action, but nary a bit of progress.”
Also, “A ‘hick town’ is where if you see a girl sharing a meal with a man old enough to be her father, he is!”
Buckle up for winter. It’s coming. Let’s hope it’s a mild one.
Winter Houseplant Care
The following are some reminders on taking care of your houseplants in the winter.
To clean heavily encrusted clay pots, scrub them with a steel wool pad after soaking them overnight in a solution of 16:1 water and white vinegar.
Be sure to keep houseplant foliage dust-free. This will allow the leaves to get the most light possible.
Humidity levels are usually lower in the winter. Be sure houseplants are receiving adequate humidity by providing pebble trays, placing houseplants near each other, or using a humidifier.
Be sure to quarantine new houseplants and inspect carefully for pests.
After amaryllis have bloomed: remove spent flowers and set the plant in a sunny window to allow the leaves to fully develop. Keep the soil evenly moist and fertilize occasionally with a general-purpose houseplant fertilizer.
Be sure to check houseplants often for common pests and treat accordingly: aphids, spider mites, scale, mealybugs, whiteflies, thrips, and fungus gnats.
Evenly water plants with tepid water. Uneven watering can lead to oedema, and watering with cold water can shock the plant.
Some plants such as spider plants, dracaenas, calatheas, and peace lilies, are sensitive to harsh chemicals in tap water like fluorine and chlorine. Damage can appear as tip browning. Water with distilled or filtered water, or allow tap water to sit for 24 hours to allow the chemicals to evaporate.
