It can be difficult to find the energy to play with your kids at the end of a long day, but non-screen-based play can give a big boost to their development and well-being. "Play is important because it's a laboratory for children to learn, explore and process the world around them, which can feel overwhelming," says Rebecca Schrag Hershberg, Ph.D., a clinical psychologist and a parenting coach at Little House Calls. "It's a chance for them to experiment with relationships and concepts they're curious about. [It's a safe way for them] to take this big world around them and make it small, to have control and play with things at a pace and in a style that feels familiar and with which they're comfortable as they grow and learn."
Good Housekeeping talked to experts about the power of play for our annual We Are Family Parenting Summit, discovering ways to maximize the benefits of playtime.
CHOOSE QUALITY OVER QUANTITY.
"We put so much pressure on ourselves to spend oodles of time with our kids, but the key is quality, focused, child-centered, child-led time, regardless of their age," explains Ann-Louise T. Lockhart, Psy.D., a pediatric psychologist, parenting coach and business owner as well as an author. "Even if it's 15 minutes of focused attention, when you're fully present and not doing other things in your mind, that can be a big thing." What if you don't have the mental capacity to do that? "Lying on the couch just observing your kids, watching and commenting, can be a way of attending and being present," she says.
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Bu hikaye Good House Keeping - US dergisinin October 2022 sayısından alınmıştır.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber? Giriş Yap
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Guide to a Stress-Free DINNER PARTY
This article provides practical tips for hosting a successful dinner party, including planning the menu, setting the scene with decor, and adding thoughtful touches to delight guests. From invitations to finishing details, it covers everything for a memorable event.
ESSENTIAL TIPS for Memory Maintenance
We forget things for all sorts of reasons stress, distraction, lack of sleep. Go from brain blips to gleaming gray matter with this expert advice.
The Mental Health Benefits of Cats - How our feline friends keep our minds purring
A recent survey on pets and mental health by the American Psychiatric Association and the American Veterinary Medical Association found that 84% of pet owners reported that their pets had a positive impact on their mental health. For twothirds of survey participants, the companionship pets offered was key to a positive mindset. Howard Liu, M.D., M.B.A., chair of the American Psychiatric Association's Council on Communications, an adult and child psychiatrist and chair of the UNMC Department of Psychiatry, says feline companionship may be especially beneficial and meaningful for people struggling with anxiety, depression and autism spectrum disorder as well as people who have a history of trauma. Of course, cats aren't a magic pill, Dr. Liu says: "Every person and every cat is unique, so owning a pet is not a guarantee of better mental health." However, people who live with chronic mental health conditions often list spending time with their cats as a coping strategy for when they are sad, anxious or frightened.
Can Anything Really Firm Your Face? - Countless complexion brands tout skin-tightening solutions like firming skincare products, at-home devices and professional treatments
Countless complexion brands tout skin-tightening solutions like firming skincare products, at-home devices and professional treatments. Here, our experts get real about whether these techniques can actually help skin bounce back once it starts to go lax. Sagging skin is caused primarily by the loss of collagen and elastin (proteins that give skin structural support and elasticity) with age, says Mamina Turegano, M.D., a dermatologist at Sanova Dermatology in New Orleans. And there's no shortage of potions proclaiming to counteract it with firming and lifting effects. Most commonly in serum and moisturizer form, these products contain ingredients like peptides, retinol, vitamin C, growth factors and niacinamide that purport to stimulate collagen production or ones that plump skin, such as hyaluronic acid.
The Stress-Busting Hack That's Right Under Your Nose- Breathwork is more than the wellness trend du jour- it's a science-backed route to relief from multiple modern ailments.
“OK, OK, just take a breath.” If that’s what a friend advises after you panic-share about a major-anxiety-inducing situation — your teen taking his maiden solo voyage behind the wheel, work instability, another high-stakes world crisis dinging your phone every few minutes — it’s probably because they hate seeing you so on edge. But also, your friend is offering an effective means of slowing your spin. “The way you breathe affects anxiety, and anxiety affects how you breathe,” says James Nestor, author of Breath: The New Science of a Lost Art. “It’s a two-way street, and while anxiety isn’t a conscious choice, our breathing is.”
Do Men Really Not See The Mess? - The answer might surprise you. Journalist and author Gemma Hartley pulls back the curtain to reveal the invisible forces that drive this all-too-common cause of marital strife.
There was a time, earlier in my marriage, when every morning as I walked into the kitchen I braced myself for the rage and resentment that would well up in me.Cupboards left open. Dirty dishes in the sink. Coffee cups strewn around the house. And usually a pair of slippers or shoes, with inside-out socks, on the floor somewhere nearby. Even when I had left the house spotless the night before, I’d wake to a scene of disarray — the mess my husband had left behind on his way out the door for work.I didn’t know which scenario seemed worse, my husband’s consciously expecting me to clean up these messes or his truly not noticing them at all. I found myself silently tallying these small resentments, furious and flummoxed in turn that he seemed oblivious to things that needed to be tidied up around the house. It seemed as if he was always waiting for me to tell him what had to be done, as if he was incapable of noticing the mess himself even when he was creating it.
BLISTERED BITES
Shishitos are delicious all yearand creepy on Halloween!
DRINK if you DARE
Welcome, vampires, skeletons and zombies: This spiritforward duo may be strong enough to wake the dead.
Have a scary-good HALLOWEN
The spookiest day of the year calls for tricks and treats!
