A Wish, A Gift, and A Goal

The season of giving is upon us. And what kid doesn’t like to bask in the warmth of the holiday spirit? Whether you have youngsters just coming of age and beginning to understand the gift of giving, or teens well-acclimated to the joy of caring for another, there is nothing like December to remind everyone in your family of how incredible helping others – and helping oneself can be. So with that in mind, we thought we’d suggest three simple, dental-oriented ideas you can share with your children to help them finish the year off right, and get prepared for the next!

The Wish: While it may be difficult to convince your child to begin informing themselves about how to stay healthy at this young age, since a healthy child is on the wish list of every parent, the best thing we can do to protect them is to educate ourselves.With that in mind, we’d like to point you to a marvelous resource developed with the health of your entire family in mind – the Patient Connect website (www.patientconnect365.com). A repository of knowledge about how to protect your mouth and body throughout life, the Patient Connect Health Topics section is worthy of your time. Over the years, we’ve realized many people are just not as informed as they should be about the effects of certain habits they may possess, or of better ways to take care of their teeth. This section of the website was built with that in mind. Check it out, and make that wish for good health in the New Year a certainty.

The Gift: Over the past few years, you may have become aware of charity organizations like Mercy Ships, which assist children and adults in poor areas of the world with mouth and facial reconstruction surgery. In certain parts of the world, children who grow up with these concerns are often shunned from their villages and grow up to lead ostracized lives with little hope to regain entry to a society where being a part of the community is a fundamental factor to living. During this season of giving, perhaps you might suggest to your child that they consider a donation to a charity or cause in which they believe, in exchange for something they might otherwise hope to receive. The internal reward a child experiences when giving to others truly can be transformative …

The Goal: Goals are commonplace this time of year, and many times we don’t quite make it through to fulfilling most of them. Even something as simple as flossing nightly easily falls prey to life’s ordered chaos. Finding time to convince your children to do the same is, well … obviously a challenge. To fare a little better this year, consider checking out a few books that offer great actionable advice that can help you stay on top of your commitments, reign in distractions, and battle that ever weakening “muscle” named willpower. This way, you can actually floss, AND make sure your kids do the same! Here are our two of our favorites to get you started: Getting Things Done, by David Allen; and, Willpower: Rediscovering the Greatest Human Strength by Roy Baumeister and John Tierney. There are more tips and tricks in these books to last a lifetime.Enjoy!

May your family be blessed now and always!

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