BUFFALO, N.Y. -- The holidays: A time for peace on Earth, good will toward others and for some, a mountain of stress.
"The baking, the decorating, all of those things are stressful,” said Susan Davison.
"Shopping, taking care of things, stressing out about having people over, fitting everything in on the weekends," Susan's husband Thomas said.
Even last-minute appointments and deadlines at work get folks riled up. Just ask Kristen Baker.
"My job! I do hair, and it's the craziest time of year," Baker said. "Everyone tries to sneak in, and I'm a people pleaser so I try to get everyone in as much as I can."
Canisus College's Dr. Christine Moll knows seasonal tension can get the best of us, but she also explained there are ways to cope, especially for people mingling with relatives who raise their blood pressure.
"Get into the bathroom and ask yourself, 'What am I feeling? I'm feeling stress. How do I want to feel? Let’s see if I can breathe and bring that better feeling back,’” said Moll.
Moll added having "me-time" isn't selfish, but necessary. Hitting the pause button to exercise or even take a nap is also perfectly OK.
"If we're exhausted, we're not going to be gracious people, but more like Scrooge and the Grinch,” Moll said.
Some folks said they have their own methods of minimizing stress levels.
"I definitely need a break from people. I need a day to decompress,” said Baker. “But on the nightly I go home and try to leave work at work and relax."
"I work a lot, that's my safe haven," Thomas said.
And if all else fails, remember this piece of advice from Moll's grandmother:
"Be good to yourself. No one could be as good to you as you can to yourself,” Moll said.