7 Holiday Shopping Tips for Sensitives

With the holiday season upon us, we can already notice an increase in traffic volume on the roads, increasingly full lots in shopping centers and progressively congested stores and checkout lines.

While the holidays bring a sense of anxious waiting, they’re also coupled with dread for many of us, as it’s easy to become overwhelmed in all the hustle and bustle. As we go through the holidays, store patron patience, manners and courtesy run on short supply and it’s easy to hold a negative attitude and vibration before ever even getting into the store, based on past experience.

If you, like me, dread hitting the stores for holiday shopping, here are a few tips that I can share that help me get through the often overwhelming task with a more positive spin:

1. Staying out of stores on weekends alone can make a magnitude of difference. I find shopping mid-week to provide the least amount of stress as stores are not as crowded, making for an overall less draining shopping excursion.

2. For parking (even though it would be easier to find closer spots for dodging lot speeders) I tend to pick further away spots. This helps avoid issues with spot stealers, people not watching where they’re driving or how fast and for those pesky pedestrians that seem to pop out of nowhere. This also reduces the risk of your vehicle being hit by carts and dinged by car doors.

3. Put off shopping altogether on days you feel stressed out, overwhelmed or less than your best. If you do have to venture out for necessities, try stopping at a drug store or similar place. You might pay a few cents more, but at the same time you’ll avoid congestion – bumping long checkout lines that move at a snail’s pace when you’re just not in the mood.

4. For popular items, such as electronics and game boxes, try calling the store ahead of time and have them set your purchase aside at the service desk. This is very convenient and saves lots of time and aggravation.

5. Placing a gold, white or blue bubble of protection, suits of armor or mirrors, or other visualized elements of protection around you can also make a huge difference. You can imagine your auric shell (shaped like an egg) expanding outward to allow you more physical space. (Though it might sound like something from Harry Potter, I visualize myself wearing a cloak of invisibility, which I find allows me to go virtually unnoticed.)

6. Make an effort to be courteous to other shoppers while in the stores, keeping the balance of karma in mind. Holding doors for others, saying excuse me to get by and apologizing when you accidentally bump someone is infectious. Rudeness and agitation is contagious. By setting a positive example, even smiling and making eye contact with other shoppers, you can make things easier not just for us, but for others as well.

7. Last, but not least, online shopping can be a gift from the heavens in many instances. Lots of stores have special online-only sales, coupon codes for checkout that can be found easily online and free shipping offers.

Holiday shopping doesn’t have to ruin your experience of the season (or be hazardous to your health). With some planning and extra efforts, you can make your outcome more positive as well as for others. While most of us are more aware of kindness during the holidays, being your best self, as often as you can, will help make it feel like the holidays all year round.