For the past month, I've been promoting Christmas gift sets. From Advent calendars to herbal tea trios, there really was something for everyone.

Two trios stole the show. Guess which ones?

Clue: 2 extremes

The top sellers are the CALM gift sets and the FESTIVE gift set. Both of these have been in your shopping baskets most often.

I compare choosing a trio of herbal teas to an internet quiz: Give me one characteristic of your ideal evening and I'll describe your moods and personality.

For me, it simply tells me what kind of tea or herbal infusion you want to drink. And also what you observe in the person you want to offer it to.

As the names of the popular trios indicate, and without any ambiguity, Quebec needs to relax (THE CALM) and to celebrate (THE FESTIVE).

We are isolated and anxious

Are we tending towards extremes because of the current situation? Or were we like this before 2020? According to several articles, lockdowns, isolation, the fear of being sick and/or contagious, working from home, and homeschooling are contributing to a decline in our mental health. As for partying, we're only human, and the lack of human contact is keenly felt.

Statistics

According to SStatistics Canada and the results of a survey conducted at the end of May, towards the end of the first lockdown/first wave, The majority (88%) of participants experienced at least one symptom of anxiety in the two weeks prior to their participation in the survey. The most common symptom was "feeling nervous, anxious, or tense" (71%), followed by "becoming easily upset or irritable" (69%) and "difficulty relaxing" (64%)..

Too much cortisol and not enough dopamine

Which translates to:

• A need to relax because we're exhausted and constantly secreting stress hormones
• A need to indulge oneself by secreting dopamine (the pleasure neurotransmitter) which is released when we engage in activities that give us pleasure such as listening to music, meditating, playing sports, making love, achieving a goal and also, consuming certain types of food, alcohol, substances…

What can we do to help each other now?

So, it's not that we want both, it's that we need both traits to feel good. We need to calm down to reduce anxiety and stress. And we also need to release dopamine by experiencing pleasure.

You've heard me hundreds of times. It's all about balance.

Thinking about it, you made a good choice with your Christmas gift sets.

1 FESTIVE + 1 CALM = BALANCE.

I still have a few left and there's still time for you to get some:

• The trio's herbal teas CALM to help manage stress
• The trio's herbal teas THE FESTIVE release dopamine.

Happy Holidays everyone!❤️🎄

PS: Lcocktail recipes who accompany the trio LE FESTIF, it's HERE!

PSS: If you've read this far, here's your promo code for a $5 discount on the LE FESTIF trio (valid until the end of 2020...)

Promo code: LEFESTIF5