4 Tips To Manage Your Child’s Behavior During The Holidays
December 15, 2022
The holidays can be an excellent time to spread cheer and spend time with your loved ones, yet they can also pose challenges for children and adults alike. It can be difficult to manage your child’s behavior during the holidays as they are often thrown into the mix of activities. Changes in meal schedules and eating all out of whack can confuse their bodies and lead to mood swings, tantrums and leave you feeling drained of all festivities.
Managing Your Child’s Behavior During The Holidays
With the holidays fast approaching, it’s easy to get caught up in the overload of events and planning. Increased stress in the household can result in emotional outbursts and can be difficult on children already prone to mood swings or emotional ups and downs. At Holly Springs Pediatrics, we want to ensure your holiday season goes as smoothly as possible. That’s why we’ve put together a few tips to manage your child’s behavior during the holidays:
- Don’t Neglect Bedtime
It can be easy to get caught up in the festivities during the holidays and forget to look at the clock! However, one way to mitigate your child’s behavior during the holidays is to ensure they are getting enough sleep. The Centers For Disease Control and Prevention suggests how much sleep a child needs depends on their age. Their recommendation is as follows:
- Infant (4-12 months): 12-16 hours per 24 hours (including naps)
- Toddler (1-2 years): 11-14 hours per 24 hours (including naps)
- Preschool (3-5 years): 10-13 hours per 24 hours (including naps)
- School-age (6-12 years): 9-12 hours per 24 hours
- Teen (13-18): 8-10 hours per 24 hours
Sleep is also critical in children to prevent type II diabetes, obesity, poor mental health, injuries, and attention or behavior problems.
- Be Aware Of Nutrition
The holidays are a time of good friends, family, and food. It can be difficult to encourage healthy eating habits due to the abundance and availability of sweet treats. To manage your child’s behavior during the holidays, ensure they are sticking to their daily meal schedule and let them enjoy treats in moderation. Children who consume unhealthy foods may have trouble concentrating, become easily fatigued or irritated, and be at a higher risk for mental breakdowns or tantrums.
- Set Realistic Expectations And Plan Ahead
As fun and festive as the holidays are, they can also be overwhelming. It is important to set realistic expectations for your child’s behavior during the holidays and be prepared for the inevitable. If your child has a tendency to get overwhelmed in loud and crowded social settings, expect this to happen and plan ahead!
- Get Your Child Involved
Sometimes the stress of the holidays can get the best of us. Between planning, traveling, shopping, cooking, and other holiday necessities, we may neglect to consider our children’s wants, needs, and preferences. Remember to give your kids a voice this year, as it will help to make them feel a part of the season’s activities. Listening to your child’s suggestions on certain things is sure to help your child’s behavior during the holidays.
To manage your child’s behavior during the holidays, it’s important to set realistic expectations, create a routine, and consider your child’s needs. By doing these steps, you have a better chance of enjoying this season’s festivities together. Holly Springs Pediatrics is committed to providing quality care to your kids at all times on a wide array of subjects. Do you have more questions about how to manage your child’s behavior during the holidays? Call our Holly Springs, NC pediatric office at (919) 249-4700 to schedule an appointment or talk to a staff member.