Gatherings with family and the holiday season in general can sometimes bring out your younger self. It can feel like you’ve traveled back in a time or are repeating patterns that sometimes didn’t feel so great.

If you start feeling this way, gently remind yourself and your younger parts that you’re no longer in those places. Remind and show them that you’re in the present and it’s different. Remind yourself that it makes sense why you’re feeling this way and it’s ok to set a boundary, take some space away and take care of yourself to reorient. And if that seems difficult to do, that’s ok. Simply holding space for how you’re feeling and noticing you’ve stepped back in time can be enough. Remind yourself that the present is waiting for you. You matter.