Staying Healthy Is Easier Than You Think

Staying Healthy Is Easier Than You Think!

The summer is winding down and weather is beginning to cool off. School is back in session and ”cold season” is around the corner. You probably have ideas running through your head of how to keep your kiddos healthy through the fall and winter: drinking orange juice, eating healthy, taking vitamins, etc. But there’s a lot more (or maybe less!) to it than you think! We have five tips for staying healthy that may not be what normally first comes to mind.

Laughter really is the best medicine. Our days are busy and stressful. Remember to take time to laugh. Tell each other silly jokes, watch funny videos on YouTube or have a tickle fight. Smiling and laughing can help to relieve stress by releasing endorphins that help your body ignore pain. Plus, laughing is a great way to bond with your kiddos. When you laugh together as a family, it can help them to feel closer to you.

Take time to relax and cuddle. We always hear about how important it is to hold and touch our newborns, but it’s important to remember that our kiddos still need hugs and snuggles as they get older. Daily hugs are great, but how about a Saturday evening cuddle sessions while you read or watch a movie together? Or maybe if you want your kids to feel extra special, let them pile in bed with you and snuggle until it’s time to go to sleep. Even as your kids get older and think they’re “too cool” for you, nighttime snuggles are somehow always on the table!

Maintain Balance in All Aspects of Your Life. You know that work-life balance is important, but there are so many more places in life that you need balance. For example, if you’ve had a busy week and you come home to laundry that needs to be done and toys that need to be picked up, just take a break. The chores will still be there tomorrow, but your family needs you all the time! Bonding with those you love the most is a great way to stay mentally healthy and combat stress.

Make Sure Your Children Feel Valued. It’s important for your little ones to learn responsibility and feel like they have important roles within your family. It may be a specific chore that each one completes each week or including them in making decisions about what to eat for dinner. This will have to curb arguments since each person feels valued—and there is no age that is too young to help your little one feel like they are contributing.

Recognize Good Behavior. While there doesn’t always have to be a reward, at least acknowledging when your little one does something good is important. Positive feedback is far more effective than pointing out things they are doing wrong. Instead of emphasizing the negative, you’re placing focus on the positive. This helps your kids feel confident and happy, ultimately making them healthier. As a bonus, it will also make disciplining easier. Since your kids will be used to positive feedback, discipline will be taken more seriously.

Eating well and staying active is the foundation for a healthy life, but there is much more to eliminating stress than we often believe. So take a break and enjoy your family this week! Find balance, reassess what is important to you and feel the results of your not-so-hard work! As always, we are here to be of support to you. Please contact us anytime Care@theollieworld.com.