By Carol Tuttle, Master Energy Therapist and the author of the best-selling book, Remembering Wholeness: A Personal Handbook for Thriving in the 21^st Century.

Every year your millions of people  fall into the same trap. Overspending, getting stressed out and obsessing about presents, family gatherings, shopping and all the other trappings that go with the holiday season

I say enough is enough. Instead of turning the holidays into a nightmare, let me show you how you can make some easy changes that will result in the best (and cheapest) season you've had in years.

* Focus on traditions and family experiences this year.

Gather your family together the first week of December for a family meeting. Brainstorm with your family the traditions of the past that you have experienced together. List them on a large piece of paper for all to see.

Next brainstorm traditions you  have not experienced yet, but think you would like to. Everyone gets a say, do not discuss anything at this point, just make the list.

Now that you have a list of too many things to do for traditions, go through and let everyone cast a vote for five traditions that they would  like to experience. The top five vote-getters are the ones to experience this year.

* How to break your pattern of going in to debt for the holidays.

During the first week of December, sit down with your spouse, (if you are a single parent, sit down with yourself), and decide how much you can afford to spend this holiday season. Do not decide based on what you would like to purchase, make the spending decision based on what you can take out of the bank without jeopardizing your finances or creating debt.

Next go to the bank and withdraw the amount you have decided on and place it in a white envelope and use this cash to make your holiday purchases. This keeps you from making emotional buying decisions with your credit card and eliminates holiday debt.

* Four things every family can do to make it a more memorable holiday season without breaking the bank.

1. Give gifts of service to one another rather than items from the store.
2. Rather than buy a lot of presents, go on a trip that is affordable. Forgo the presents in place of the trip. 
3. Find a family in need and take a portion of your money to help this family get the basics they need. Make sure you let your children do the shopping so they have a first-hand experience seeing what others need that we can take for granted.
4. Make this year a Thrift Store Christmas. The rule is every gift has to be purchased at a thrift store. You would  be amazed at the high-quality items in good condition that you can find at thrift stores these days.

With the increase in purchasing, people in today's culture do not hang on to things like our ancestors did. We get rid of things a lot faster and in really good condition. Besides just saving a lot of money, the money you are spending is going to a good cause as all thrift stores are tied to good causes.

Learn more clever ways to reduce your holiday stress and debt on my popular audio CD Unplug the Christmas Machine where you will learn what children want from their parents even more than presents, and it doesn't cost a thing!