HELP FOR HOLIDAY HEALTH BOTHERS

Outsmart'tis-the-season symptoms with these easy tips

- BRENDA KEARNS

HEIGHTENS CALM
Holiday socks

Juggling all of your usual to-do's with extra seasonal tasks can make tension and anxiety soar. Next time you're feeling too rattled to relax, don a pair of reindeer socks, a Santa sweater or snowman necklace, and your stress could fade away in seconds.
Researchers in the journal Brain Sciences explain that gazing at cheery seasonal colors prompts the eye's optic nerve to send soothing messages to the brain.

BANISHES THE BLUES

A silly selfie session

In a funk? Spend a few minutes taking one selfie after another (on your own or with friends) while you smile, laugh or make silly faces. A Stanford University study reveals that simply looking happy (whether your facial expression is genuine or pretend) can erase a glum mood in seconds. How? Smiling stimulates nerves under the skin, which then signal your brain to release mood-steadying alpha waves.

ENDS INSOMNIA