--- title: How to Stress Less as the Year Ends, Using the NHS's Own Advice description: Year-end deadlines, parties and spending pile up. NHS advice on spotting stress early, working smarter, drinking less and knowing when to get help. author: Dr Marina Nani (Editor-in-Chief) date: 2026-11-04T12:30:00.037Z updated: 2026-11-04T13:16:55.583Z canonical: https://www.richmanmagazine.com/article/how-to-stress-less-year-end image: https://cdn.nanimediahouse.com/pexels-9930079.webp categories: Wellbeing, Lifestyle content_type: Guide publication: Rich Man Magazine schema_type: Article --- The last weeks of the year ask a great deal of a working man. Targets have to be met before the books close, reviews and budgets arrive at once, the diary fills with parties, and the presents, the travel and the bills all land in the same few weeks, while the evenings grow dark before most people leave the office. Stress was already high before any of that began. Mental Health UK's Burnout Report 2026, based on a YouGov poll of 4,502 adults carried out from 3rd to 5th November 2025, found that 91 per cent of adults had faced high or extreme pressure and stress in the previous year. One worker in five had taken time off sick because of poor mental health caused by stress, and 35 per cent said they would not feel comfortable telling their manager that they were under extreme pressure. The NHS publishes [ten stress busters](https://www.nhs.uk/mental-health/self-help/guides-tools-and-activities/tips-to-reduce-stress/) and a set of [self-care tips](https://www.nhs.uk/every-mind-matters/mental-health-issues/stress/) on its Every Mind Matters service. None of them needs a gym membership or a week off, and most fit into an ordinary working day. Wednesday 4th November is [National Stress Awareness Day](https://www.richmanmagazine.com/article/stress-is-contagious), set up by the International Stress Management Association, which makes this week a good one to start. ## Know the signs before December arrives Stress shows up in the body as often as in the mind. The [NHS lists](https://www.nhs.uk/mental-health/feelings-symptoms-behaviours/feelings-and-symptoms/stress/) headaches, tense or aching muscles, an upset stomach, chest pain or a racing heart among the physical signs. The mental signs include trouble concentrating, difficulty making decisions and a sense of being overwhelmed. Behaviour changes too: snapping at people, sleeping far more or less than usual, eating differently, avoiding people and drinking or smoking more. A man who notices two or three of these in the run-up to Christmas has an early warning, and the time to act on it is before the busiest fortnight of the year, not after it. ## Take charge of the year-end list The NHS names a feeling of powerlessness as one of the main causes of stress, and its answer is to act on the things within your control. In practice that starts with the list. Put the tasks that matter most at the top, leave the least important ones until last, and accept that some of them will not be finished before January. Every Mind Matters suggests breaking a large task into smaller steps and giving yourself credit as each one is done. It also recommends planning ahead for the days you already know will be hard, with a to-do list, a plan for the journey and anything that needs packing ready the night before. ## Keep moving when the days get short Exercise will not make the stress go away, the NHS says, but it can take the edge off the emotional intensity and clear your head enough to deal with problems more calmly. A brisk walk at lunchtime has the added benefit of getting you outside while there is still daylight. The NHS also recommends setting aside time for yourself, and suggests a couple of evenings a week for socialising, relaxing or exercise. In December those evenings are the first to disappear, which is the argument for putting them in the diary now. ## Go easy on the drink at office parties The festive season runs on alcohol, and the NHS is direct about it: drinking, smoking and caffeine may feel like a release in the short term, but they do not solve problems and create new ones over time. Alternating drinks with water, leaving a party at a set hour and keeping some evenings free of alcohol altogether are simple ways to stay on the right side of that line. We have also set out [eight ways to reach January rested](https://www.richmanmagazine.com/article/christmas-stress-burnout), from setting a budget to protecting your wake time. ## Talk to someone, and do someone a favour The NHS advice puts real weight on other people. Colleagues, friends and family can help you see a problem differently, and talking it through often leads to a solution. That matters at work, where the Burnout Report found that more than a third of workers would not raise extreme stress with a manager. We have written about [how loneliness affects the body and how to reverse it](https://www.richmanmagazine.com/article/can-you-die-from-loneliness). Helping others counts too. The NHS suggests that volunteering or community work [can build resilience](https://www.richmanmagazine.com/article/more-than-a-third-of-women-in-britain-reported-high-anxiety-this-year-7-ways-to-build-emotional-resi), and that someone short of time can still do one small favour for another person every day. ## Accept what you cannot change Some pressures will not move before the end of the year, and the NHS advice is to stop spending energy on them and spend it on what you can control. It also recommends ending each day by writing down three things that went well or that you are grateful for, however small. Challenging yourself with a new goal, such as a language or a sport, is another of its suggestions, and January is a natural moment to start one. ## When to ask for help The NHS advises seeing a GP if you are struggling to cope with stress or the things you have tried are not helping. If you need help soon but it is not an emergency, you can call NHS 111 or use its online mental health service. Anyone who needs immediate help, or knows someone who does, should call 999 or go to A&E. November is also Movember, the month for men's health, and Rich Man has set out [seven health checks every man should know about](https://www.richmanmagazine.com/article/movember-health-checks-jeremy-clarkson-chris-hoy). A check-up booked before the end of the year is one less thing to carry into the next one.