FARGO—Dr. Sawchuk at the Mayo Clinic provided advice on how to safely celebrate while maintaining healthy relationships with family and friends.
The first tip is to stay true to your values when making your decision. If family members try to persuade you, it's best to stick with your original thoughts so you can decide what is best. Sawchuk explains this will help to feel less guilty.
Next, he urges people within one household to have a discussion to define boundaries. He says this will help a lot with stress and you can communicate to those outside of your household together about how you are celebrating..
He highlights people should decide early so they can give other family members time to plan. He admits some may disagree, but explaining the reasons for the decision can help.
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Sawchuk also says to be flexible and open, maybe your family won't meet in person, so a zoom gathering works best. He says it will look different this year, but eventually, we will be back to safely spending time with our family members.
Lastly, Sawchuk says to acknowledge the disappointment but remember there is a light at the end of the tunnel. Stay optimistic and hopefully we will be back with our families in no time.
"It's all about getting together so it's almost like amplifying that need and that urge so in turn that's creating some challenges and in fact some very difficult conversations," Sawchuk says.
