I remember a conversation I had with a friend around Christmas time many years ago, where they were moaning about how rough they felt. They felt so tired, bloated, sluggish, unmotivated, and completely burned out. I wanted to help them feel better, so started trying to find out why they were feeling all these things. It quickly became clear all of these symptoms were probably linked to lots of meals out, frequently drinking alcohol, staying up late on a regular basis and not getting enough sleep, stressing because they were behind at work, and squeezing in lots of meet-ups with many different friends to make sure they saw everyone they could over the holiday period. They’d been pretty busy for a few weeks!

The discussion led to my friend giving a big sigh, and admitting defeat - they had to just accept how they were feeling, and ride the wave until they’d start to feel better, probably later in January. After all, it was Christmas, and you want to have fun, be merry and social. And it’s not possible to stay healthy and be social. They would accept it was part and parcel of the festivities at this time of year….and again in the spring, then in the summer when BBQ & outdoor drinking season arrives…

Feeling run down and burned out?

It can be easy for your social life to impact your health, often resulting in stress, exhaustion, reduced energy, illness, low mood and anxiety.

I don’t agree with this. I completely believe that you can be healthy and still be social, especially at the time of year I’m writing this, when there’s a constant stream of social and fun activities being thrown into your path.

It can seem with all of the advertising pushed in our face everywhere we turn, it’s a time of year when normal life absolutely should be cast aside. It sends the message that it’s ok to be a ‘different’ person over the festive period. You should loosen the reigns on normality, throw caution to the wind, indulge. After all, it’s the only way to really enjoy yourself, and end the year on a high.

I’m all for partaking in the increased social events you get invited to, and enjoying the only available to buy for two months of the year food tantalising your taste buds. I believe it can be good for your mental health to see family and friends you might have missed the rest of the year, or spend time with those who make you feel most loved, creating extra special memories to treasure - I say ‘can’ be, as not all family and friends might have the same positive impact on your mindset and wellbeing!

To enjoy the celebrations that come for many of us at this time of the year, as well as all of the other social opportunities and events during the rest of the year (because when you add them up, you’ll realise your year is pretty jam packed for twelve months, not just one!), it doesn’t mean you have to trade off your health.

Having good health is possible throughout the whole year. It’s something achieved through living your life the way you want to, in a way that makes you fulfilled and happy. Because having good health and wellbeing isn’t going to result from a feeling of deprivation and scarcity. If you feel as though you’re constantly denying yourself everything you like to eat and do, your brain isn’t going to be functioning in a way that allows you to feel happy, healthy and strong.

It all comes down to balance. Finding what works for you is the key to having good wellbeing. Building a lifestyle that has the right habits in place to sustain good mental and physical health, and also accepting that there are no ‘naughty days’, or ‘cheating’, or ‘days off’, is the answer. Accept that everything is just a part of your life and your balanced approach to living it. Believing you can only have one of the other - a healthy life or a social life - is not true.

Now, if you’re a particularly social person who goes out with friends on a regular basis, who enjoys having food served onto a table in a restaurant several times a week as opposed to cooking at home more often than eating out, it will mean you need to have more established habits in place that you’re able to stick to, than someone who might not have as many temptations in their daily path. There is a reality to the potential risk to good habits being out socialising can bring, but there’s risk to someone who stays home too. The world we live in brings lots of temptation to our health on a regular basis, and threatens to break those good habits, whether we’re out every night or at home every night.

“You can’t say ‘yes’ to everything and not say ‘yes’ to taking care of yourself.”

— Shonda Rhimes

Being healthy and well comes as a result of consistency and the right habits. They’re not things you feel only on certain days of the week, or times of the year. Yes there’ll be days you don’t feel as good as other days, and times when something is off from how you’d like to feel. This is absolutely normal and we shouldn’t beat ourselves up over these types of feelings or days. The habits and consistency need to become a part of who you are and how you live. They shouldn’t need to be forced, remembered, or chosen to forget doing for a while. They are part of who you are.

So, when you’re going off out to the works party and know you’re going to be having a few alcoholic drinks, or eating from the buffet, that’s ok. Think about what you normally do and what you can stick with, whilst still going to the party. Can you go to bed at your usual time? Or maybe make sure you’ve done your daily workout beforehand and drank lots of water? Then you get up the next day and resume your routine. You don’t make one event, one night out, a weekend away, become a week or more, of scrapping the habits that are part of your usual daily routine and lifestyle.

You enjoy the moment, have fun, be social, create memories, and still know that your mind and body matter. You keep up the great habits you’ve got in place in your daily routines, accept there’s new stuff happening, enjoy the festivities, and then resume your normality in between.

Whatever the occasion, event or special time of year, it’s important to be social and connect with those you want to spend time with. Being social is one of the most powerful things for our mental health, but it shouldn’t be assumed that you can only be social by doing things that don’t also nourish your health and wellbeing. Make choices in how you’re social that mean they fit with your habits and routines. Do things that feel even better because you know they’re aligned with who you are and how you live your life. Remember that it’s always a balance, you can be social and healthy both at the same time.

Check out this short blog with some tips on how to have a healthy life alongside a good social life.

A HEALTHY LIFE OR A SOCIAL LIFE? - Is it really possible to have them both?

THE GREAT CHRISTMAS CRASH AND BURN - Can you avoid it?

SLEEP - Do you get enough of it?