The holidays are
behind us, and you may think that the inappropriate behavior of your
grandchildren is a thing of the past as well.

Time for a Reality Check

Unfortunately, the tantrums
they threw over a toy they didn’t get from Santa, or the food they refused to
eat at supper, or the meltdown at the supermarket because they couldn’t have a
treat, are going to continue right into the new year.

The reality is that
sometimes kids are naughty on purpose, and putting your foot down can send them
into a tailspin, especially if their parents seldom do so.

At other times, we put
our grandkids into what we think will be fun situations that eventually turn
miserable. A trip to the theme park, a visit with the cousins, or a meal at a
restaurant can lead to overstimulation and, ultimately, obnoxious misconduct.

There Is Yet Hope to Bring Order

Regardless of the
reasons, it’s essential for your sanity that you are able to bring the kids
back to normal when a meltdown occurs. Although it’s probably not your job to
restore order all the time, sometimes you may be the only grownup for the job.

Here are a few
techniques to try the next time your sweet grandchild turns into a little
monster:

Stay Calm

If they are
shouting, don’t start shouting back. Refusing to react or get sucked into their
tantrum is essential.

Meet the Child’s Basic Needs

Offering a drink of
water, a snack, or a nap may nip the problem in the bud, so try this right
away.

Remove the Child from the Situation

If you are in a
public place or with a group, it might be necessary to take your grandchild to
another area. For instance, if you are at a restaurant, go outside and take a
little walk while you talk calmly, asking what will make him/her happy.

This will not only
help the child, but it will allow all the other diners to enjoy their meal. No
one wants to be around a screaming kid.

Get Cozy

If you are at home,
bring the child into the bedroom and snuggle. Turn the lights down low, find a
book, and begin to read with the child or look at the pictures. Although the little
one may still be agitated, your job is to distract him/her with the calming
sound of your voice.

These techniques
may sound like common sense but keeping them in mind could help prevent a
little hiccup from erupting into a full-blown storm. Next time you see the
signs that a melt-down is imminent, remind yourself that you know how to handle
the situation, and remain calm. You’ve got this!

Let’s Have a Conversation:

How often do you
have to deal with an agitated grandchild? What do you do to calm them down? Do
you have any other tips to share? Please use the comment box to express your
thoughts!

After a lifetime of working for
money, why on earth would we want to go and work for nothing?

I was a volunteer with the National
Trust in the UK for nearly four years. I was a costumed guide, showing people
around a 17^th century house, making the stories come to life, and I
loved it.

For me, it all came to an end when my husband left, and I had to find myself a proper job. It’s something I would go back to in a heartbeat if I could.

The Benefits of Volunteering Are Immense

But if you have extra time on your hands, don’t need to work for cash, or simply like helping others, then volunteering might be the thing to bring a spring to your step. And it comes with various benefits.

Giving Back

For one, volunteering allows us to
‘give something back’ when we’ve come to the end of a successful working life.

Mood Booster

For some, volunteering is a reason to
get out of bed in the morning – it can give structure to the day or the week.
Getting up and getting out, whatever the weather, because we know we’ll be
missed if we don’t turn up. There is nothing wrong with wanting to feel useful
and appreciated.

Hobby Land

It might be the chance to pursue a
hobby that we didn’t have time for before we retired. Or the chance to do
something new.

Skill Polish

When you volunteer, you get to engage
your skills so they don’t get rusty. Whatever your skillset, there will be an
organisation that needs volunteers to do just that!

Keeping Social

It’s a perfect way to meet
like-minded people. Volunteering isn’t just about the work – it can also be a
very sociable thing, with people getting together for meals or drinks or
outings outside of the actual work.

Fighting Loneliness

It gets us out of the house. There is
nothing wrong with admitting to ourselves that we are bored, or lonely – and
volunteering will cure both.

Sharing Skills

If you have a skill, pass it on!
Volunteering can give you the opportunity to share your skill with others and
teach them how to do it too.

Making a Difference

It can enable us to help people less
fortunate. For people on a limited income, giving time to a charity that is
close to our heart can be easier than giving money.

Mind Booster

Volunteering keeps our brains active.
Use it or lose it! In my case, I had to actively learn a fairly long list of
names and dates and the stories that went with them. The brain needs exercise
just as much as the body does.

A Few Points to Your Resume

If, like me, you need to get a job in
a hurry because your husband has left you, or some other event happened – at
least you’ll have something interesting on your CV.

We Are Living Longer and Healthier Lives

We are all generally living longer,
and our quality of life is increasing too. After a lifetime of working for a
living, often in jobs we didn’t particularly enjoy, we want to get out there
and do something we actually like, for as long as we possibly can.

You know the saying, “You don’t stop
because you get old, you get old because you stop.”

So, let’s not stop. Let’s keep going,
giving our time for the benefit of a cause we believe in. Helping others and
helping ourselves at the same time.

One volunteer is worth 10 pressed
men. And women.

Let’s Have a Conversation:

Where do you volunteer?
What do you do? And why? What got you started? Please share your volunteering
experience and the benefits it has brought to your life.

If you purchase an independently reviewed product or service through a link on our website, STYLECASTER may receive an affiliate commission.

Hair shedding can be difficult to talk about, but it’s important to note just how many people deal with problematic scalps. While it’s relatively normal to lose between 50 to 100 hairs a day, according to the American Academy of Dermatology Association, anything beyond may be considered excessive. Treatment options ultimately do vary depending on several factors, but if you are experiencing a reduction in growth, investing in an effective biotin serum may be a solution.

While you’re assessing all the options available at your fingertips, consider the Luv Me Care Biotin Hair Growth Serum on Amazon. The under-the-radar formula is not only on sale for 20 percent off but has thousands of shopper’s backing up its claims.

Packed full of essential vitamins and botanical ingredients, the serum stimulates growth at the roots while boosting their hair’s natural texture, volume and strength. It also rejuvenates the scalp and strands to prevent thinning and breakage, therefore dry, damaged and frizzy locks will only appear smoother, shinier and healthier with time. 

Amazon

Luv Me Care Biotin Hair Growth Serum

Just take one reviewer’s photo evidence as proof: “I’ve always had very thin hair and I was shedding like a husky on a hot summer day! These pictures were taken after one week, ONE FREAKING WEEK,” they wrote. “I was very impressed, my hair was shedding less, it felt stronger and fuller…I also applied the product at night on the corner of my lashes and eyebrows, with an eyebrow brush and I started noticing a difference when I put my mascara on, my lashes looked fuller and longer with just one coat!”

RELATED: Selena Gomez Used This $9 Growth Oil on Her Brows In a Recent TikTok—& Shoppers Say It ‘Really Works’

Consider our minds blown. Though, with highly-nourishing additives like biotin, caffeine and castor oil included in the serum, we’re not surprised it actually provides results. In fact, reviewers say it has the ability to fill out a range of sparse areas, including the hairline, bald spots and the eyebrows. One person even noted that it has the power to greatly minimize dandruff with continual use. 

“This product has been unbelievable for my hair,” shared another. “I had Covid over a year ago, and had the unpleasant afterwards side effect where my hair was falling out in clumps. My fiancé originally got this for me as a test run, and now I can’t live without it. I was skeptical but I can see the difference already. If you’re suffering from Covid related hair loss please try this. I hope it works for you the same way it did for me!”

Say no more—the Luv Me Care Biotin Hair Growth Serum just may be worth a try. Grab it while it’s down to $20 on Amazon.

If you purchase an independently reviewed product or service through a link on our website, STYLECASTER may receive an affiliate commission.

Hair shedding can be difficult to talk about, but it’s important to note just how many people deal with problematic scalps. While it’s relatively normal to lose between 50 to 100 hairs a day, according to the American Academy of Dermatology Association, anything beyond may be considered excessive. Treatment options ultimately do vary depending on several factors, but if you are experiencing a reduction in growth, investing in an effective biotin serum may be a solution.

While you’re assessing all the options available at your fingertips, consider the Luv Me Care Biotin Hair Growth Serum on Amazon. The under-the-radar formula is not only on sale for 20 percent off but has thousands of shopper’s backing up its claims.

Packed full of essential vitamins and botanical ingredients, the serum stimulates growth at the roots while boosting their hair’s natural texture, volume and strength. It also rejuvenates the scalp and strands to prevent thinning and breakage, therefore dry, damaged and frizzy locks will only appear smoother, shinier and healthier with time. 

Amazon

Luv Me Care Biotin Hair Growth Serum

Just take one reviewer’s photo evidence as proof: “I’ve always had very thin hair and I was shedding like a husky on a hot summer day! These pictures were taken after one week, ONE FREAKING WEEK,” they wrote. “I was very impressed, my hair was shedding less, it felt stronger and fuller…I also applied the product at night on the corner of my lashes and eyebrows, with an eyebrow brush and I started noticing a difference when I put my mascara on, my lashes looked fuller and longer with just one coat!”

RELATED: Selena Gomez Used This $9 Growth Oil on Her Brows In a Recent TikTok—& Shoppers Say It ‘Really Works’

Consider our minds blown. Though, with highly-nourishing additives like biotin, caffeine and castor oil included in the serum, we’re not surprised it actually provides results. In fact, reviewers say it has the ability to fill out a range of sparse areas, including the hairline, bald spots and the eyebrows. One person even noted that it has the power to greatly minimize dandruff with continual use. 

“This product has been unbelievable for my hair,” shared another. “I had Covid over a year ago, and had the unpleasant afterwards side effect where my hair was falling out in clumps. My fiancé originally got this for me as a test run, and now I can’t live without it. I was skeptical but I can see the difference already. If you’re suffering from Covid related hair loss please try this. I hope it works for you the same way it did for me!”

Say no more—the Luv Me Care Biotin Hair Growth Serum just may be worth a try. Grab it while it’s down to $20 on Amazon.

There’s an ancient saying that goes something like this: What we give our attention to, grows.

If our attention goes to the relentless need to do it all and to please everyone along the way, over time living this way will come at the expense of our health.

It will put too much stress on our mind. Exhaust our body.

While we can be so generous with ourselves, taking care of others and giving of our time and resources, we can lose sight of how all our giving and doing is having an impact on us.

For some of us, we feel its impact, but for our own very good reasons carry on in the same vein anyway, ignoring our body’s signals along the way.

It’s innocent really. Nobody teaches us about the ways our body tries to speak to us, with a pain here, or an ache there; weakening fatigue, or overwhelming emotion.

Besides, we don’t have time to pay attention to our body. We’re busy. We’ve got important things to do.

Ignoring Our Body’s Signals Comes at a Price

Research reflects the toll stress takes on the interconnected body and mind. It contributes to the development of familiar health conditions, such as heart disease, obesity, diabetes, headaches, depression and anxiety, gastrointestinal problems, in addition to accelerated aging.

There’s also a growing body of literature that reveals the connection between the stress of childhood trauma and the development of adult disease.

What We Can Do About It

There’s a little something I like to call the Circle of Life. It’s an uncomplicated observation that’s emerged out of decades of therapy work with clients.

It refers to the idea that we have a bank of energy to spend. We spend it on the people, places and things that matter to us.

We also spend our energies on replenishing them. Filling up our bank to capacity again before dipping in and sending our energies back out into the world. Energy out. Energy in. Simple.

However…

What I’ve noticed over the years is we’re particularly good at spending our energies.

Not so attentive to replenishing them.

That is, until we become so out of balance we must begin to pay attention, or else face the ill effects caused by a continued downward momentum to our health.

It’s becoming common for me to work with women whose attention gets taken up by a series of distressing life events. Each rolling into the other over the course of many months, even years. The stress of it all becomes too much to bear. Exhaustion sets in. Depression emerges. It’s at that point that a woman reaches out for help to find her way through. I have to admit, I’ve been there too.

When, for our own good reasons, we neglect to pay attention to ourselves during stressful times, it betrays the body-mind’s inherent need for the restorative experience.

What does this mean?

It means taking the time to pause, unwind, reflect, and allow the body and mind to restore from the inside out. Doing so refines our alignment with our own natural rhythm. It deepens our connection with our own unique voice.

The restorative experience brings healing. Healing brings balance. Balance brings contentment.

We return to our world with all of its complexities feeling grounded, refreshed, and at more ease with ourselves.

It’s the forgotten key to well-being.

The Road to Restoration

Here are 5 tips for inviting the restorative experience into our world:

Create a Restoration Spot

Designate a physical space where we can retreat to, where we can pull back from the world, settle in and shift our focus to spending quiet time with our self. It could be in a room in our home, or a corner of our garden, or it may be somewhere away from home, like a tranquil area of a local park, or by the beach.

Set the Tone

Signal to our deeper mind that it’s time to slow down and spend intimate time with our self. If we’re at home, light a candle, or turn on music that feels soothing to our soul, or turn on the diffuser with our favorite essential oil.

Practice the Art of Doing Nothing

Yes, you read that right. Stop doing. I know it can be hard. But this is the point: for some of us we’ve become so conditioned to being in motion that it’s become a real challenge to not-do.

One of my favorite ways of “not-doing” is through a restorative style of hatha Yoga (Please note, if you live with cardiac issues, consult with your physician first before engaging in this practice.), where the body is held in a supportive way so it can restore its vital energies.

A Supported Corpse position comes to mind: lying down on the floor on a mat, or perhaps on the bed, with a pillow beneath the knees, a blanket over the body, and simply resting here for 5 or 10 minutes at a time. (If you feel any form of discomfort in this posture, stop what you’re doing and come out of it. Your safety and well-being are paramount when practicing Yoga.)

If you resist the idea of spending intimate time with yourself, consider this: Why not? What’s turning you off about being in your own company?  

Express Yourself

Write down your thoughts and feelings in a journal. Or, paint, draw, collage, or play music if you’re so inclined. Talk to someone you can trust. Let the truth of you be expressed in a way that feels good to you.

Feed Your Soul

Read inspiring literature. Listen to uplifting music. Pray. Spend time in the company of a cherished friend or family member, including an animal friend. Or practice forest bathing, drawing in the atmosphere of a forest. Do the things you know will nourish you from the inside out.

When we invite the restorative experience into our world, we complete the Cycle of Life. We let there be room for a natural restorative process to replenish our vital energies and breathe new life into our body and mind. In the course thereof, we remember we are more than a human-doing. We understand from our renewed perspective what it feels like to be a human-being.

Let’s Have a Conversation:

How would you describe yourself? Are you more of a human-doing right now? Or do you engage in restorative practices? If so, what are you weaving into your life?