Winter vacation is coming, take early action to prevent children from winter vacation syndrome | Winter vacation health tips

The long-awaited winter vacation is finally here! Children put down their heavy schoolbags, get away from school life, and enjoy this time for themselves. However, this period may also bring some challenges to them. Some children will experience the so-called holiday syndrome, which is a psychological and behavioral problem caused by the change of life rhythm and environment .

Why does holiday syndrome occur?

How should parents guide

To help children cope with "holiday syndrome", parents can refer to the following practices.

Keep a regular schedule during holidays

Parents can set a relatively fixed bedtime and wake-up time with their children. In order to ensure that children eat regularly, they can also be asked to participate in the preparation of three meals a day and help with housework to enhance their self-care ability and sense of family responsibility. In addition, avoid storing too many snacks at home.

Balance leisure and study

While arranging leisure and entertainment, parents can regularly organize some entertaining and educational activities, such as taking children to participate in research activities, visiting museums, etc., to subtly improve their enthusiasm for learning.

Parents can arrange a small amount of study plans for their children according to the school's requirements to consolidate the knowledge they have learned, and they can also appropriately preview the learning content for the next semester. Avoid over-arranging study tasks, such as too many make-up classes or requiring children to complete excessive homework. Holidays should not become another form of school life. Too many study tasks may make children feel stressed and are not conducive to maintaining a high learning efficiency.

Control the use of electronic products

Work with your children to set time limits for screen usage. You can also try setting up “screen-free times,” such as banning screen time at the dinner table or during family activities.

When restricting the use of electronic products, try not to just emphasize "prohibition", as this will easily trigger children's rebellious emotions. Instead, emphasize more on "what can be done", such as encouraging children to participate in physical exercise, outdoor activities and family activities, so that children can feel that even if they do not use electronic products, they can still experience a lot of happiness and a sense of accomplishment.

Promote social interaction

Encourage children to communicate with friends more, or arrange some small gatherings between family and friends to help children maintain and develop social skills. Parents should try to avoid leaving children alone all day.

Pay attention to mental health

Parents should not only care about their children's physical health and academic performance, but also take the initiative to understand their inner feelings and thoughts, and care about changes in their emotions and social situations. When facing children's emotional fluctuations or behavioral changes, parents should listen more, understand more, comment less, and preach less. Don't just blame them. Be patient to find out the reasons for the changes in children, help them learn to express their emotions reasonably, and deal with difficulties in life, academics, and social aspects.

If the child continues to have negative emotions, parents should actively seek help from professionals, such as finding a psychologist, or going to the psychiatry department of a hospital to check whether the child has a mental illness.

Different stages of the holiday may have different focuses

Early in the holiday season : Parents can help their children transition from school learning mode to holiday leisure mode. Plan holiday activities and goals with your children, such as learning a new skill, completing a specific project, or taking a family trip.

Mid-term vacation : Review your child's activities and progress towards goals regularly and make adjustments as needed. Keep communicating with your child and encourage them to share their experiences and feelings. Maintain moderate learning activities, such as weekly reading time or review of specific subjects.

Late holiday : At this time, parents can gradually guide their children to return to their school schedule. Learn about the upcoming new semester together, discuss children’s concerns and expectations, help them adjust their emotions, and prepare for the challenges of the new semester.

In short, holidays are also a precious period for children to grow up. Parents can effectively prevent children from being "entangled" by holiday syndrome through reasonable guidance. I wish all children a happy and fulfilling holiday, and to welcome the next stage of growth in the best mental state.

Author: Liu Jingran, Beijing Children's Hospital, Capital Medical University

Source: Healthy China