Although most people enjoy spending time with their family and friends over the holidays, there is also inevitable friction with our loved ones. Often, this happens because of tense conversations that we would be better off avoiding, at least for the duration of the holiday. Luckily, you don’t need to avoid your family altogether during the holidays to stay sane and prevent fighting. Instead, just tread carefully around certain delicate subjects, and approach them with caution when they do come up. Here are three topics that cause many problems at family events and some tips on preventing fighting about them.
First of all, politics can easily lead to family strife, especially during an election year. You don’t have to choose between staying silent on important issues and fighting over the dinner table, however. You can choose to be quiet at family events but also make your thoughts known to your loved ones. Instead of arguing, consider buying an informative book for someone you want to share political views with. For example, if you’ve been discussing solutions to reduce unemployment, you may want to send them I-PLAN for American, which offers ideas for economic solutions. Then, you can discuss the ideas outside of family gatherings, when you both have cool heads.
Next, stay away from other controversial subjects like religion and any moral issues that you don’t agree on. It’s easy to avoid discussing these if you stick to talking about personal stories and good news for your family. Similarly, don’t tell jokes that may offend people. Instead, keep these jokes for your friends, or share them on anonymous social media where they can’t come back to haunt you in future years.
Finally, don’t dredge up old family conflicts around the dinner table. Every family has issues that always lead to arguments, so you need to make a conscious decision to avoid them. Let sleeping dogs lie, as the saying goes, and promote family peace by focusing on the present and future. If you can’t led these conflicts go, talk about them to a therapist. In the mean time, avoid family events if they’ll be too stressful and difficult.
Your family holiday should be a joyful occasion. Make positive memories with your family, especially its older members, while you can. Letting go of old conflict and avoiding new controversies make it possible. For more reviews visit http://evolutionsofar.com/
