The holidays are the most wonderful time of the year. Except they're not. For parents of young children, the holidays can be especially difficult, especially when children are out of school, struggling with high blood sugar levels, late bedtimes, and lack of routine.
“It's just crazy. It's everybody's words and everybody's thoughts and there's a lot of fun, but it can be a lot, you know?” says Meg Wallace, a mother of 7 who lives in San Antonio, Texas.
While many parents may feel pressured to maximize vacation time and create “vacation days” for their family and friends, family expert Tom Kersting suggests not to. exaggerate.
Kersing says: “We need to remember to try to keep our children doing the same things during the holidays.
But relying too much on entertaining children with electronic devices can have a negative effect. Excessive screen time can contribute to obesity, sleep disturbances and eye strain, according to the Mayo Clinic.
“Kids don't know how to be lonely these days because they're constantly being stimulated by some kind of device,” says Kersing.
To avoid the “Christmas crankies” or hearing the words, “I'm bored” during the holidays, Wallace suggests getting the kids involved in the activity plan.
“We have this dream list where everyone writes down, I want to go ice skating, I want to make hot chocolate,” says Wallace.
Rather than setting guidelines for specific time limits on digital media use, the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) updated its media use recommendations in 2016 to encourage consideration of quality. of interacting with digital media not just quantity, or time period.
“I love a good movie night with our kids with popcorn. I love all of that. But the kids get very angry. They just change. Their personalities change when they have a lot of screens,” says Wallace.
Anger management during the holidays can also be especially difficult as parents can enjoy entertainment.
“I think as mothers, it's important to remember the anger…
To keep everything in balance, Kersing advises his patients to practice gratitude.
“So instead of looking at it like, I had to survive this. Look at it as a breath of fresh air, ..Because this is a wonderful thing,” says Kersting.
Experts also suggest that parents practice self-care during the holidays.
“The part that mothers can get wrong, where we want it to be very perfect. We want everyone to be happy …. it's not about that perfection,” says Wallace. “It's really about connecting with the ones you love.”