How to Survive the Holidays With Your Energy Intact
Survive the Holidays With Your Energy Intact: Spiritual & practical tips for sensitive souls.
The holidays will test your boundaries. Here’s how to protect your peace, stay grounded, and keep your energy clear—no matter what the season brings.
The holidays magnify everything—the beauty, the chaos, the noise, the nostalgia. There's more to do, more to plan, more people in your space. And if you're sensitive or intuitive, this season can overwhelm your nervous system faster than you realize.
But it doesn't have to. There are ways to stay centered no matter what’s happening around you.
Are You Protecting Your Energy—Or Just Pushing Through?
If you're dreading certain conversations, already feeling exhausted before the season even starts, or noticing your body tensing up when you think about upcoming gatherings—your energy is trying to tell you something.
You don't have to power through. You don't have to smile and bear it. And you definitely don't have to sacrifice your peace to keep everyone else comfortable.
About Me
I'm Janet Rae Orth, and for 30 years I've been teaching people how to work with spiritual energy—not as an abstract concept, but as a lived, felt experience. As an intuitive reader, energy healer, and spiritual coach, I've helped countless sensitive souls navigate the energetic challenges of the holiday season and all year. You don't have to sacrifice your peace to show up for the people you love—and I'm here to show you how.
👉 Want weekly insights on protecting your energy and navigating the holidays with grace? Join my newsletter for guidance through every season—including the hard ones. You'll also receive a special discount on your first reading. [Subscribe here »]
Why Energy Protection Matters During the Holidays
The holidays aren't just busy—they're energetically dense. You're navigating family dynamics, ancestral patterns, collective stress, and your own expectations all at once. For sensitive people, this can feel like walking through emotional quicksand.
But here's what most people don't realize: protecting your energy isn't selfish. It's necessary. When you safeguard your peace, you show up more present, more genuine, and more grounded for the people who matter. You can't pour from an empty cup—and the holidays demand a lot of pouring.
🪞 Journal Prompt:
What would it feel like to move through this season without sacrificing my peace?
What am I willing to protect this year that I've given away in the past?
Start With Your Space: Clear the Clutter, Clear Your Mind
Before the season truly begins, clear the clutter. It sounds simple, but your nervous system feels every pile, every undone task, every object quietly demanding attention.
There's a saying in Feng Shui: cluttered home, cluttered mind. It's true. The energy of everything around you creates distraction and noise. Clear it now, and you'll feel calmer before anyone even arrives.
Plan ahead, too. Buy staples in advance. Know what you're cooking and where you'll get what you need. Prepare now so there's less rush later—and more room for ease.
Try this: Walk through your space and ask yourself:
Is this item supporting the peaceful holiday I want to create?
Or is it adding to my overwhelm?
Clear one surface—a countertop, a table, your entryway—and notice how much lighter you feel.
Anticipate the Eccentricities of Others (And Release the Need for Them to Change)
Every family has that one person who says the wrong thing at the wrong moment. Or the one who stirs the pot. Or the one whose silence is somehow just as loud.
You already know who they are, what they'll do, and how it affects you. Expect it—before it happens.
Why do you get hurt over and over by the same people? Because the optimist in you hopes it will be different this time. This year, try something radical: expect them to be exactly who they are.
Adjust your expectations, and you won't be disappointed. When you accept what is, you no longer have to brace against it—and you won't be thrown off balance when it happens.
This isn't being negative; it's being realistic. And it's liberating.
🪞 Journal Prompt:
Which family dynamics am I bracing against this season?
What would acceptance look like instead of resistance?
How can I protect my peace while still showing up with an open heart?
Ground the Space (And Yourself) Before People Arrive
Set the energy intentionally. Use warm, earthy colors—deep reds, golds, greens—tones that feel soothing and calm. Add candlelight and soft music. Sage or clear the space before guests arrive, and again after they leave.
And ground yourself, too:
Drink something warm
Take a walk after dinner
Step outside for fresh air
Soak in a bath and feel the excess energy leave your body
Download the Rose Meditation to protect your personal space and keep your energy clear and grounded [here»] It’s simply ten minutes and you can use it before they come and after they go.
Try this: Before anyone arrives, stand in your space and set an intention. Place your hand on your heart and say (silently or aloud):
"This space is grounded. This space is protected. Only energy that serves the highest good is welcome here."
This simple act creates an energetic intention for the gathering—and reminds you that you're in charge of the energy you allow in.
Allow Your Pace to Be Gentle: Work With the Retrograde Energy
Expect delays. We're heading into Mercury retrograde starting November 9, which means travel delays and people arriving late. Build in extra time and patience.
Don't take it personally—the universe isn't trying to frustrate you; it's trying to slow you down. Two other major planets are retrograde this month as well, and a third is about to be.
So lean into the Yin. No rush, no push. The Yang of summer—the doing, the striving—has ended. Let yourself soften into the season's slower rhythm.
Try this: When you feel yourself getting frustrated by delays or changes, pause and take three deep breaths. Remind yourself: "This slowdown is protecting me. I have permission to move at my own pace."
Let Your Feelings Be What They Are
If you're not feeling as joyful or grateful as you'd hoped this year, that's okay. You don't have to force the feeling.
That's the beauty of ritual and routine—they hold you when your emotions waver. You already know how to do the holidays. So do them that way.
Show up. Light the candles. Cook the meal. Keep the traditions. Do it for the kids, your parents, your friends—and for yourself. There will be a year when they do it for you, and you'll be grateful they're there.
🪞 Journal Prompt:
What emotions am I actually feeling right now—without trying to change them?
What would it mean to honor those feelings instead of pushing them away?
How can I show up authentically, even if I'm not feeling "festive"?
You Don't Have to Be Perfect
Remember, perfection isn't your purpose. Presence is.
The holidays don't have to be perfect to be meaningful. They just need to be honest, grounded, and full of heart. You can show up exactly as you are.
Protect your energy. Keep your expectations gentle. Let this season meet you right where you are.
Peace isn't the absence of chaos—it's the presence of grounding. Start there, and everything else will unfold with grace.
Need Help Navigating the Season?
Feeling energetically drained already? In an Intuitive Reading, I'll help you clear what isn't yours so you can move through the season grounded and calm. Together, we'll identify energetic blocks, release what you're carrying that doesn't belong to you, and create a personalized plan for protecting your peace.
[Schedule Your Intuitive Reading →]
What clients say:
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"Janet's insight truly opened my eyes and changed my life." — PW
"Janet has given me some of the best advice I've ever received in my life, which I'm so grateful for." — MC
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Closing Reflection
This season, may you find your center in the chaos. May you protect what's sacred. And may you remember that showing up as yourself—exactly as you are—is more than enough.
Remember: peace isn’t found in perfection — it’s found in presence.