The Pros and Cons of Sending Holiday Cards
Contributed by Faizan.
The mere process of sending holiday cards has more than social courtesy about it and it does have real therapeutic value that positively influences mental and emotional health.
Self-care in the busy season of the holiday is a potent aspect of mindful practice in an era of fast-paced digitalization, which physical card creation and sending can be.
The Mindfulness of the Handwritten Connection
When composing holiday cards, one must take time and pay attention to the present, which becomes the basis of mindfulness practice. All cards need complete attention when composing meaningful words in your messages, stuffing mail envelopes and adding personal touches to them.
This slow pace creates a meditative state of mind which reduces anxiety and makes one think clearly. The tedious rhythm of writing, sealing, stamping becomes the type of ceremony, which is permitting to have a rest after the exhaustion of the holiday and the list of the things, which have no end.
Physiological and Psychological Advantages of the Creative Process
Designing holiday cards involves the use of a variety of your well-being in a manner that cannot be repeated in a digital context:
Fine Motor Closeness: The physical action of writing with your hand triggers neural connections that never get stimulated when typing with keyboards, and this uses your mind to think and memorize better.
Stress Hormone Decrease: Concentration devotion to imaginative actions such as card designing or personalizing can decrease the hormone cortisol and it helps reduce measurably the stress during what can be a crushingly season.
Dopamine Release: The process of completing every card produces small dopamine releases, which produce the sense of achievement and satisfaction, which naturally improves the mood.
Sensory Stimulation: Activities such as smelling, seeing colors, and touching high-quality paper can utilize all of your senses simultaneously, bringing you into the present and enhancing your overall sense of awareness.
In combination with the other benefits, they make the card-making process a holistic therapeutic experience that assists in both mental and physical health.
Developing Gratitude by Reflection
When you select the people to receive your holiday cards, the first thing that occurs to you is the thought of meaningful relationships. When you think about the people to invite, you mentally go through the good relationships that you have in your life, which develops the sense of gratitude. To make a merry Christmas photos card by choosing the ideal picture, you need to flash back on the happy things that happened last year.
This kind of reflection reinforces positive memories and also helps you see the blessings that are lost amid the daily endeavors. Such types of gratitude practices can be scientifically demonstrated to induce elevated mood, resilience and overall life satisfaction.
Development of Significant Social Interrelations
Many people are isolated and lonely during the periods of the holidays. Active sending cards will overcome these emotions, as it will strengthen the social ties. Every card is a deliberate attempt to connect, which reminds the senders and receivers that they are important to someone.
The expectation of a reply forms something good to look forward to, and exchanging cards with each other brings the sense of community. The bonds satisfy the basic needs of belongingness and recognition, which play an important role in emotional health.
Therapeutic Advantages of Therapeutic Benefits and Expression
Personalization of cards provides unmatched emotional value, which cannot be provided by mass communication:
Emotional Processing: Writing personal messages would allow you to process and express feelings that would otherwise not be expressed, and it is like journaling therapy.
Creative Outlet: getting to select the design, the choice of color and other decorative features creates mental tension when personalizing custom holiday cards and this will release tension and create joy.
Identity Affirmation: The cards that you make are a representation of your personality and values that strengthen your identity and make you feel even more confident in your unique point of view.
Control and Agency: When everything is chaotic, having the power to control all elements of your cards, including the selection and delivery, gives one a sense of agency and empowerment.
These personalization aspects turn sending cards into an obligatory a deliberate self-expression that holds real therapeutic benefit.
Developing Desirable Expectation and Intention
The sequential nature of producing and mailing cards offers organization and meaning to otherwise pointless or confusing weeks. By making a list of the cards you intend to write, you have planned out time to write, and you have clear-cut, manageable objectives by arranging mailings.
The expectations of the reaction of the recipients bring positive prospects, which offset the seasonal depression. The awareness that you are making someone smile on a day makes your work meaningful not just to yourself but also to a greater extent, according to the psychological studies conducted on the subject, mental health and satisfaction in life.
Tradition and Building of Legacy
Participating in the card-sending tradition makes you a participant in a bigger entity than yourself and that is an intergenerational and intercultural tradition. Continuity provides permanence and stability, especially when the situation is unpredictable.
Making rituals of your own to send out cards will create traditions that you will be able to stick to every year and have something to look forward to doing that. To most of them, the cards they leave are family treasures that generations to come will value and the cards have a deeper meaning and permanence to the therapeutic practice.
Conclusion
The therapeutic values of sending holiday cards are much deeper than mere communication. This kind of conscious action eases stress, creates appreciation, strengthens social relations, and provides authority expression simultaneously to retain favorite traditions.
It is by thus of a kindness, which you give yourself, that you are also giving to yourself a present, as well as to those to whom you wish to grant a gift, that you are thus, by spending a certain time to this precious occupation, not only giving you time, but also giving the others a time to whom you are offering to give a present.
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