Mental Health Related Holiday Gifts for EVERYONE of ALL AGES

A highly curated selection of my favorites.

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LAST MINUTE HOLIDAY GUIDE FOR MENTAL-HEALTH-THEMED GIFTS

While Hannukah might be over, there are still other holidays upon us. And it’s never too late to buy mental-health-related gifts, holiday or not.

Below, please find a highly curated selection of my favorites (the only biased ones are my own!)

FOR ADULTS

In my never-ending quest to eradicate the stigma of suffering from human emotions, I’ve made t-shirts! Why not wear our feelings and diagnosis and show there is no shame in suffering?

  1. EVERY BOOK EVER MENTIONED in the How to Live newsletter can be bought right here, in the How to Live bookshop.

  1. Acupressure mat with massage balls

    I have one of these (and one just for feet!), and I love it and use it often.

  1. BetterSleep App

    This app is legitimately life-changing. I fall asleep to it every night. I have a selection of about seven sleep meditations I rotate through, but there are also stories for adults and kids. This one is for everyone of all ages!

  1. Light Therapy Lamp

    Feel like a VIP in a fancy green room while getting some necessary light therapy for your winter SADs.

  1. Theragun mini. This is a bit more expensive, but I bought one last summer on sale, and I can attest that this price is actually worth it. (Unless you can’t afford it, in which case it is definitely not worth it!!)

  1. This one is free! People with anxiety and depression often find basic, everyday tasks hard to complete. Why not offer your time, an hour at least, to clean the kitchen, do the dishes, or help make calls and return emails? This goes a long way and is truly invaluable.

FOR TEENS

  1. Mindfulness Pendant (this one is on my list to buy for myself!) This is a breathing tool and a fidget tool in the form of an aesthetically pleasing necklace. It’s also 25% off right now. YES, PLEASE!

  1. Nothing like a $4 gift that will satisfy literally everyone over the age of eight. It’s a sticker!

  1. This is my new obsession (yes, I am part teen). Plant Therapy Diffuser!

  1. You Are So Not Invited to My Bat Mitzvah! by Fiona Rosenbloom (AKA Amanda Stern—ME!) (Okay, okay, this is not a mental-health-related book, but it’s fun and funny, so maybe??)

FOR KIDS

  1. The Calm Ball. Remember the Magic 8 Ball? This is the same idea but for CALM.

  1. Mindsight Breathing Buddha. Daily guided breathing exercises for every time of day, including winding down. I mean, how can you resist?

3. The Calming Cuddle Ball is designed to hug kids when needed! (I WANT!)

  1. Noise Cancelling Headset for the Noise Sensitive Among Us!

  1. Pod Swing for Winding Down and Self-Soothing.

  2. 5lb Weighted Stuffed Animals! Here’s an elephant.

  3. Chew Necklaces for sensory overload.

What am I missing? Leave your favorite mental-health-related gifts in the comments, with links if you have them!

Until next week, I will remain…

Amanda

(Nope, I'm not a therapist or medical professional, or even a journalist! I'm just a human being who writes about my lifetime struggle of learning how to live.)

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Many (but not all) book and product links are affiliates, meaning I get a small commission if you purchase a book through one of my links. This money goes back into the newsletter. 

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