Be Ready for Back To School!

Summer is coming to a close, and it is time to get ready for back to school. The transition from summertime fun to school work and homework isn’t an easy one, but there are steps you can take to help your kids prepare. As you know, the healthier the body, the easier it is to take on stresses of everyday life, and that includes getting back into the school-time routine. Here are our tips.

Sleep Tight!

Helping your child transition from late nights and sleepovers to school-year bedtime is a tough battle. Sleep is vital to overall health and wellness and is an excellent habit to instill in your kids.

To make the transition easier on your kids and yourself, start getting them back to their regular bedtime and wakeup times one-two weeks prior to school starting. That gives your child’s body plenty of time to adjust. If the school year has already started, you can still start the process of getting your child back on a bedtime routine. Start by having them go to bed 15 minutes earlier for three to four nights. Then increase that time by 15 minutes again. So if bedtime is 8:30pm during the school year and 9:30 during the summer, have your kids go to bed at 9:15pm. After a few days, push it back to 9pm. Those small changes won’t seem so drastic and will help your child adjust. By the time the school year starts, they will be back on schedule!

To make the process easier, try these tips:

• Be sure that your kids are getting plenty of activity during the day. Not only does this help form healthy habits, it promotes proper sleep cycles and increases fatigue so bedtime comes easier.
• Keep your kids hydrated! Every cell in the body requires water, and supporting those basic needs will help them get restorative sleep. A good rule of thumb to keep in mind is that you should drink 1/2 ounce for every pound you weigh, so if your child is 80 pounds, they should drink at least 40 ounces of water per day.
• One hour before, turn off all electronics. Playing games on a tablet or smartphone is no way to wind down due to the lights they emit. Encourage your kids to read a book or listen to relaxing music.

Proper Nervous System Communication

Most kids get in plenty of activity during the summer, from camp to swimming to just playing games in the neighborhood. Switching from being very active to more cognitive activities (i.e. using their brain in a greater variety of ways) to different functional requirements (sitting for sometimes hours at a time) can put stress on their bodies and communication systems.

The brain communicates with the rest of the body through the nervous system and a healthy spine is essential to a healthy nervous system. When the nervous system is functioning optimally, your child is better able to use energy efficiently to meet the demands of increased focus. Having your child’s spine adjusted will also help them remain comfortable during long hours in the classroom and will improve their overall health and movement.

Back To School can be a stressful time of year, but with these small adjustments, you will help both you and your child get back into the swing of things. To learn more about making chiropractic a part of your back to school routine, click here to contact us.