By Dr. DelRae Messer It’s cold and flu season. I can’t help but notice the majority of grocery stores and pharmacies advertising flu shots, cold medications and new vaccinations for “prevention” of sickness. It’s ironic to me that every year at the same time, we are bombarded with advertising that tries to convince us that our innate immune system is not enough. This outside-in approach to prevention and treatment has given us a false sense of what health truly is. Health is not merely the absence of disease but each and every one of our cells functioning at an optimal level. It is not merely “feeling” well, but functioning with robust … [Read more...]
Why Failure Is Not Always A Bad Thing For Kids
October 24, 2013 by Leave a Comment
We have all heard, "If at first you don't succeed, try, try again." What happens when you don't succeed, though? Do you really try again? Or do you give up? A new study by French researchers found that children who were told learning can be difficult, and that failing is a natural part of the learning process, actually performed better on tests than kids not given such reassurances. As a Psychologist who works with success and the benefits of failure every day, I believe there is no better way to take the punch out of failure and keep a kid going on work than to train them to fail with grace. In the study, they focused on a … [Read more...]
So What’s Your Excuse?
October 21, 2013 by Leave a Comment
While driving my daughter to school on Friday morning the local radio hosts were talking about a Mother of three from Sacramento, California who posted a photo of herself that went viral on facebook. The photo showed an attractive, super-fit woman, three young boys aged 8 months, 2 years and 3 years, and the caption, "What's Your Excuse?" The radio hosts took phone calls from the listening audience, polling the listeners about whether the Mom was an inspiration to others, or whether she was just being obnoxious. (Most of the audience was positive and polite--at least in the limited time that I listened in.) And yesterday (Sunday) morning, the … [Read more...]
Seven Signs Your Teen Is Sleep Deprived
October 17, 2013 by Leave a Comment
...And Seven Tips To Prevent Severe Fatigue Does your teenager always want to sleep in the morning? Does he or she mope around in the morning? Do they drag to school? Most do. It turns out that there's usually a valid reason for this behavior. According to the Center for Sleep and Wake Disorders, tweens and teens need 8.5 to 9.25 hours of sleep each day. Between homework, part-time jobs and social activities, teens rarely seem to reach that ideal amount. Consequently, tweens and teens can become irritable and moody. Admittedly, it can be difficult to tell whether it's sleep deprivation or teen hormonal changes that are the cause of the … [Read more...]
Listening To Your Teenager – Tips For This Important Skill That Can Improve Your Relationship
October 10, 2013 by Leave a Comment
By Karen Vincent A parenting skill that is very powerful with teenagers is Listening. I know... this can seem like a very basic and obvious skill, however, this is not necessarily the case and this can be a tricky skill with teenagers sometimes. The reason for this is because it can be scary for teenagers to think about how much they need you and rely on you as their parent or guardian. Think about how much energy they spend pushing you away in an effort to prove how much they DON'T need you (which FYI they are trying to prove to themselves more than to anyone else). Because of this, it is important for parents to take advantage of the … [Read more...]
The Next Level of Parenting
October 3, 2013 by Leave a Comment
By Nicholeen Peck So many people ask me how to take their parenting to the next level, even with their out-of-control children. A man I really admire named Jeffrey Holland said, "... the only real control in life is self-control." True self-control is the next level of parenting. Here's why. You can control the settings on your computer, and control the television choices that come into your home. You can control all the things written down as your Family Standard and you can control what your family eats for dinner, but you can't control another person. No matter how hard you try and how much power you try to look like you have, the … [Read more...]
Parenting Teenage Girls – Aim For Parental Influence, Not Control
September 30, 2013 by Leave a Comment
When you're parenting teenage girls (or, for that matter, teenage boys) your goal or aim as a parent is to exercise your parental influence, not necessarily control. Trying to control your teenager, even if she isn't particularly strong-willed, will not work and isn't healthy for her, either. The topic of parental influence vs. control is one I had to struggle with myself, as I was brought up with a parenting style that fit more in the "dominator" than the "partnership" model and I didn't want to repeat that pattern with my own kids. I grew up in the sixties and seventies and my mother was definitely controlling. I think the combination of … [Read more...]
Tired of Worrying? 5 Ways to Turn This Around
September 26, 2013 by Leave a Comment
What do you worry about? If you haven't worried about anything this past week, then don't read this article. But I'm guessing you have. Even the most enlightened and spiritual will find themselves in a state of worry. We worry about different things. We worry about our daughters, marriage, job, parents or money. Your daughter worries just as much as you but over different things. (Even if she acts like she doesn't care about anything.) She worries about her friends, boyfriend or no boyfriends. She worries if she'll make the team or get in the college of her choice. Worry is an uninvited guest. You don't wake up and think … [Read more...]
Family Traditions – 15 Fun & Meaningful Ideas For Any Family
September 5, 2013 by Leave a Comment
By Matthew Toone Family traditions help provide each family member a home, an environment, and relationships of purpose in a world of confusion, disorganization, and decreasing morals and values. Traditions provide families the desired foundation of comfort, familiarity, and consistency, which helps reduce family disunity, dysfunction, and separation. And yet, the most effective family traditions are not those that only occur annually on certain holidays, they are made evident in daily and weekly habits and actions that are simple, yet significant. No, these traditions are not about large meals, big events, fancy decorations, or annual … [Read more...]