7 Tips for Keeping Kids Healthy

 

Our children are exposed to so many different germs and come into contact with superbugs and viruses on a daily basis, and even more so when they are in daycare and school. While we can’t prevent them from getting sick at all, and getting exposed to viruses is what actually builds their immature immune systems, there is a lot we can do as parents to reduce the number of illnesses per year, as well as lessen the severity when they do get sick.   

As a Mom of three I am always doing many things to keep my children healthy, happy with their immune systems functioning to the best they can be. I look to the holistic model (mental, emotional, physical and spiritual) for balanced health, and consider that everything is connected. If our children are not well rested, eat too much of sugar and fake junk foods, have too many activities they rush around to every week (on top of school) and their home life is tense and stressful (with unbalanced and stressed out parents) these factors all have an effect on their immune systems and overall well-being. So, what are we to do? Here are some tips to keep in mind when considering your child’s health:

1)     Reduce refined sugars: Sugar depletes the immune system, period.  Sugar is also in just about every single processed food and packaged drinks. While 100% fruit juice has no added sugar, it is pretty close to the same thing as a lot of the naturally occurring nutrients have been processed out and later added back in. It is still a processed food and should be limited. An alternative 'soda' I give my kids for special occasions is called Zevia. It is sweetened with Stevia and comes in several different flavors. Or, try freshly squeezed fruit juice topped off with sparkling water. Read labels, and avoid foods that have more than 3-4 grams (or less) sugar per serving. It all adds up.  

2)     Make sleep a high priority:  Young kids need 11-12 hours of quality sleep per night, most take at least an hour to wind down after a busy day. I try to start the bedtime routine of diming the lights, and zero screen time after 6 p.m. on school nights.

3)      Hygiene: Teach them proper hand washing habits. Remind them to use these same habits at school as well. Skip the chemical loaded 'anti-bacterial' soaps and go for a naturally derived soap instead.

4)     Subdue stress: Kids get stressed and overwhelmed just like we do, and these days are way too overscheduled, and need more down-time carved in their days. Teach them the essential life- skill of relaxation and help them learn ways to unwind from the day, such as meditation, deep breathing, walking in nature, spending time with a pet, journaling or drawing before bed. Make sure they have regular ‘recharge’ periods during the day as well between activities. Also be mindful of your own stress levels and emotional balance, as our presence in the home has an effect on our kids well-being. Take care to attend to your own self- care and model healthy stress management.

5)     Nutrition: Whole food nutrition is the best foundation we can give our kids, for a healthy lifestyle. Whole foods as much as possible is the way to go!

6)    Support the body:  Strategic supplementation is helpful. A quality multi vitamin, vitamin C, Vitamin D, and (Echinacea or Elderberry extract when they are sick) are a good place to start. If frequent viruses and infections are present, have their blood tested for nutrient deficiencies such as low iron or vitamin D levels.

7)    Explore essential oils: Only use pure, therapeutic grade essential oils that are certified pure, and safe for ingestion. Two of my favorite products I use on my kids are the doTERRA "On Guard" protective blend, and "Serenity" relaxation blends. For fever peppermint is helpful applied diluted with a carrier oil and applies to the forehead, and "Breathe" Respiratory blend is wonderful for cough and stuffy noses. For a free consultation about how to integrate the use of oils into your family life, contact me to book an appointment. View my website here: http://www.mydoterra.com/mindbodyhealing/

Educate yourself, learn all that you can about embracing a holistic health approach for yourself and family, pass what you learn onto your children. As a parent we can do a much better job of raising healthy, happy kids if we use an ounce of prevention along with being proactive and informed about healthy living. We also must practice what we are teaching, by living well as a healthy role model for our kids. If they see us making exercise a priority, making green smoothies and taking time to relax, they will be much more open to following along! If we take care to plant the seeds of living well while our children are young, what they learn will serve them very well in the future. Teaching them how to take care of their precious mind, body and soul is one of greatest gifts we can give our children, and one that will last a lifetime.

 

Leanne Oaten is a Holistic Counsellor, and Integrative Wellness Coach. She works one-to- one with people who want to improve their health and make positive changes in their life. She can be reached at 250.319.3630 or www.soulworkcounselling.com

 

All it takes is a little inner~ shift to change your life!

Do you listen to the whispers and gentle nudges from the universe, and your higher self? Or do you ignore them, and later look back and see that ignoring them was definitely a mistake?

How many times in your life can you recall ignoring that inner voice of wisdom, and realizing later it was trying to protect you?

Perhaps it was a business partnership that you were so excited about, but had that little tug deep within saying "something is off" but you went ahead anyways, just hoping for the best- only to have it end in a negative way, or just not work out how you had hoped?

How about taking on a new commitment despite those inner feelings of discord, only to have it end up being something that you can not manage effectively with your already busy life?

We must learn to trust our inner voice, if we want to live a life of truth and a life that truly is our own. Often we take on things or get into situations for the wrong reasons, and ignore what our truth is trying to communicate to us.

I recently had the pleasure of working with a client who was in a really rough place, and her world had crumbled beneath her feet, and seemingly to her, in a very short period of time. I helped her see that her circumstances did not appear all of a sudden, but were slowly coming toward her over a long period of time, through signs, and intuitive nudges from the universe-urging her to look at her life.

It took an accident and a broken limb, lost relationships, and hitting rock bottom, for her to finally STOP and look at her life!

She was having one Aha! moment after another, and spoke of how she should have trusted her inner voice that was trying to communicate with her.

She was able to experience a positive shift in a short period of time in our working together, that lead her to some deep healing, and inner transformation, simply from learning to tune in.

The other layer to this whole mess we often get into, is that we are so disconnected from our truth, our souls, our bodies and emotions, that we start living an inauthentic existence because we are so disconnected from what we really want and need! We pursue and continue with things because we think we "should" or because it will not look good if we bow out, or our egos get in the way and identify with a certain image we are trying to create, and all of this is not even truly who we are, or what we even want! It's all a mask.

Another way we stay disconnected is by over-filling our schedules, staying attached and 'wired' in with electronic gadgets, phones, texting etc.. We literally become addicted to distraction!

  We are disconnected from our body, pain, feelings, inner voice and higher self. We don't even know who we truly are, or what we want or how we feel.

Why do we disconnect from ourselves that way that we do? Here are a few underlying (often unconscious)  reasons:

-we are avoiding looking at the truth in our lives- a failing or unhappy marriage for example
-we are avoiding dealing with the past and any trauma or hurt we carry
-we feel discomfort within our own skin, and want to avoid FEELING it.
-We have deep sadness or feelings of loneliness we can not tolerate.
-there is unhealed wounds of the past that have not been processed or acknowledged
-it is just too painful to actually tune in, and feel what is present within
-we are afraid to feel what is present, because we fear our world will fall apart if we do
-We are depressed, stressed and overwhelmed

To connect to that inner wisdom, we must get quiet. For some this is a very uncomfortable thing to do because they have never truly looked within to see what is inside of their hearts, emotions and feelings. To hear what their soul is trying to communicate to them.

I see this so often in my work with my clients, and know this to be true for myself: If we don't stop and pause regularly, tune in to our emotions (soul energy), our inner voice, how we are feeling, and actually listen to what is present- eventually something will happen that will force us to stop and look. Illness and declining health, injury, accidents, relationship problems, our children experiencing problems, repeated random mishaps (such as hot water tank, dishwasher and vehicle transmission needing replaced in short period of time) are all ways the universe intervenes to try and get our attention. If we do not hear the little whispers, they eventually become louder, and louder.

 Other big ways might be a partner leaving, friends disappearing, sudden job loss, and so on. Whatever 'it' is, will surely be something that will rattle us within, and force us to stop and look, and hopefully start taking steps in a positive direction, working to change what our soul is calling us to look at.

I see many people through my client work, as well as in daily life that are addicted to chaos and never-ending busyness. I have a radar that goes off when I hear someone telling me how swamped they are,  how exhausted and burned out they are, how they don't sleep, how their body is failing, how they have no time for themselves or to focus on making any life changes.
Often their relationships are suffering, and they have a deep void that nothing can ever fill.

On my own journey, the biggest parts of my growth and healing have come from my learning to tune in, connect with myself regularly, develop emotional awareness and awareness of 'self', feeling what is present without judgement, and learning to love myself exactly where I am in every single moment. I believe that the biggest barrier to us having the life that we truly want, full of joy, health, love and positive relationships is our avoidance of connecting within. We have to have a healthy relationship with ourselves first, before we can experience a rich fulfilling and deeply satisfying life.

I encourage you to begin befriending yourself. Take time every single day to just be present with what is, by sitting quietly, alone with eyes closed for a period of time. No t.v, or electronic gadgets, no music, or other distractions, just silence. Listen to what you hear, if you are quiet long enough you will be amazed at what you receive from this time of going within. Begin with 5 minutes in the morning, and 5 minutes before bed, sitting in silence. This simple practice, will change your life.

To enhance this process, keep your journal nearby to free-form write all that you become aware of. I have had some of my biggest epiphanies during and coming out of a meditation! Writing anchors what comes up, and we can later refer to it to see how we are evolving and changing.

Big life changes and inner transformation happen from many little inner-shifts. Change doesn't have to be overwhelming, and you don't have to makeover your entire life right away! Little shifts lead to big and long-term, lasting changes.


I assist people with learning to tune in and heal from within. If you would like to experience a positive shift in your life, please contact me about my packages and upcoming workshops.

Leanne Oaten
Holistic Counselor, Soul-Centered Life Coach
doTERRA Wellness Advocate : http://www.mydoterra.com/mindbodyhealing/
www.soulworkcounselling.com
www.flourishcenter.ca
250-319-3630