Stressed Out? Try Reading.
It should come as no surprise that I'm a fan of reading. #authorsink Right? It's sort of right there in the hashtag. Authors use ink to write books...books...reading. Bam. Read a book.
And I'm sure it's no surprise that there's stress in this world. For adults and kids. Between work, sports, grades, getting into college, planning for retirement, the list is endless. We have stress in abundance and it impacts our health and well-being.
It's important to combat stress at every turn, especially if we want to help our kids grow into healthy, productive citizens. That doesn't mean they can't enjoy sports or work on their grades, but it does mean we need to offer them some healthy, stress-relieving outlets as well.
Don't worry. I'm not going to say you need to take away the video games. As a mother (and grandmother), I understand that sometimes, you just need five minutes and an easy way to get that five minutes, is by handing over the screen. Let's be real: if you need that five minutes, GET THEM! Even if it means, handing over your phone or the iPad, or the video game controller. All of my kids grew up playing video games. They totally get it from their dad though. I just don't have that hand-eye coordination it takes to be a successful gamer. #uncoordinated for sure!
But, we can also teach our kids (and grandkids) to use books as a healthy outlet to unwind and reduce stress. Every chance I get, I buy my grandkids new books. Dr. Seuss is a huge hit around here. Even if we're just looking at the pictures together, it's a time to get centered and relax.
Need more convincing? Check out this blog post I came across on the value of kids' reading and combating stress. Then, give it a try. Whether you look at picture books together with that special little one, or read aloud to/with one another, institute an evening reading routine, try and see how it goes. There will always be stress in your child's life. Give them an opportunity to explore new worlds and characters while dealing with that stress.