You don’t have to be a child psychiatrist or doctor to guess why children’s behavior changes during the holidays.
Changes to their diet, sleeping schedule and overall excitement from visiting family are likely the most common.
In a perfect world, parents would make their children keep the same eating habits and schedules all year long, however, rarely that is the case for adult and children.
Here are a few tips to make the transition smoother and not such a “shock” to your child’s system.
- Small changes make it easier to transition from one habit to another. If you foresee your kids having later nights with the holidays, try making their bedtime a little later each week in 15-30 minute intervals.
- It is very common kids and adults are going to eat more carb rich or sugary foods around the holidays. Most likely they are easily accessible, cause spikes in insulin and hungry. Try leaving out healthy alternatives to “trump” those choices are mix healthy snacks with sugary ones.
- Stay active. Most likely kids won’t have trouble with this one, especially if cousins with similar ages are present. However, calmer play like walks and board games is a good mixture to make sure kids don’t get overtired which can lead to grouchiness.
- Make sure your kids are taking vitamins. Vitamins are a great way to temporary ensure your kids are getting the right nutrients they need during the holidays especially when people are getting sick.
Try these tips and we hope you have a Happy Holiday Season.