5 Yoga Practices to Bring Calm Into Holiday Chaos

The holiday season can be joyful and overwhelming. Changes in routine, busy schedules, late nights, and heightened emotions can leave both children and adults feeling overstimulated and frazzled. The good news is that calm doesn’t require long yoga sessions or perfect conditions. A few simple practices, shared together, can make a real difference.

These practices aren’t just tools for getting through busy moments, they’re also an opportunity to build healthy habits as a family. When you practise alongside your children, you model calm, self-regulation, and care for the body and mind.

Here are five realistic yoga-based practices parents can use for themselves and with their children during busy holiday days.

1. Belly Breathing for Instant Calm

When emotions run high, the breath is the quickest way to settle the nervous system.

Place one hand on the belly and one on the chest. Breathe in slowly through the nose and feel the belly rise. Breathe out gently through the mouth and feel the belly soften. Invite your child to copy you.

Doing this together shows children that calm is something we practise, not something we demand. Even three to five shared breaths can help everyone reset, especially before bed or after busy social moments.

2. Grounding Through the Feet

Grounding helps everyone feel safe and present when things feel noisy or rushed.

Stand together with feet flat on the floor. Gently press down and notice the support beneath you. You can invite children to imagine growing roots like a tree or becoming a strong mountain.

By practising grounding together, children learn that their bodies can help them feel steady and they see you using the same tools alongside them.

3. Gentle Stretching to Release Tension

Tired bodies often hold stress in the shoulders, backs, and necks.

Move together through simple stretches: reaching arms up, rolling shoulders, or folding forward slowly. For children, animal poses like cat, cow, or child’s pose can make it playful and accessible.

Sharing movement creates connection and releases tension without adding more stimulation to the day.

4. Quiet Time With a Simple Visualisation

Visualisation offers a calm mental break from busy surroundings.

Sit or lie down together and imagine a peaceful place a cosy room, a beach, or a snowy field. Let children describe what they see and feel. There’s no right or wrong way to imagine.

This shared quiet time helps children associate stillness with safety and comfort, especially when practised regularly.

5. Rest and Stillness as a Family

Rest is a powerful habit to model.

Lie down together or sit comfortably with soft music or silence. You don’t need perfect stillness. The intention is to pause together, showing children that rest is allowed and valued.

Even a few minutes of shared stillness can help regulate emotions and energy levels.

A Final Thought

When you practise yoga and mindfulness with your children, you’re doing more than calming the moment you’re building lifelong skills together. These simple practices can become familiar rituals that support connection, emotional awareness, and calm long after the holidays are over.