Family Matters

How to Get Kids to Sleep: Bedtime Strategies for Buzzing ADHD Brains

June 28, 2023
by Richard Steinberg, M.D.
from ADDitude.com

Think you’ve tried it all to get your child to sleep? Make sure to review these basic strategies – from devising a smart bedtime routines to properly prepping a room for sleep – and consider other options to help your child fall and stay asleep.

As a pediatrician with a specialty interest in children with ADHD, I know that sleep problems are practically the rule, not the exception, for this group. It’s an issue that frustrates and concerns many parents, who come to me after they’ve run out of ideas for getting their child to fall and stay asleep.

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What to Prep Now So The Kids (and You) are Ready for Back-to-School

It can be so hard to start thinking about school mid-summer when we’re experiencing sunny, 80-degree days and 9pm sunsets. Who wants to ruin the summer vibe by making a back-to-school checklist?! The reality is that the kids won’t be doing that—so it’s going to have to fall on you, the parent. Get some of these tasks done now, and ease the stress and hectic nature of the kids’ transition back to school.

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Step-by-Step Guide for Securing ADHD Accommodations at School

October 28, 2022
from ADDitude Editors

8 straightforward steps — from requesting a school evaluation to monitoring accommodations — to help parents develop the best IEP or 504 Plan possible for kids with ADHD.

 
How to Get an IEP or 504 Plan for ADHD

The process of securing academic accommodations for your child with attention deficit disorder (ADHD or ADD) can be confusing — and intimidating. Follow these eight steps to take the hassle out of requesting and establishing an IEP or 504 Plan for ADHD.

1. Get an Accurate ADD Evaluation

Write a letter requesting an evaluation to see if your child with ADHD might benefit from academic accommodations.

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7 Life Skills Every Teen Should Know Before Graduating High School

Teens know “everything,” amiright? They can drive, serve as your personal IT consultant, make TikTok recipes, find a meme about anything, and thrift for amazing finds. But as your teen heads off to their post-high school life—whether it’s higher education, a gap year, work, travel, or volunteering—there are some life skills they should have. You won’t always be right there to handle everything for them. Even if they aced their AP exams, it doesn’t mean they have all the skills they need to live independently. Adulting is something they will aspire to, and in order to navigate life after graduation, they should have an understanding of these skills.

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Paper Overload? What to File, What to Digitize, and What to Shred or Recycle

Paper. It’s one of the things we just can’t live without, though most of us try to minimize our use of it, and recycle or shred what we can. The U.S. Mail brings us an excess of paper daily, most of it junk. When any major life event happens—marriage or divorce, purchasing or selling a home, starting a business—there will be a small mountain of paperwork to contend with. And when tax season rolls around, the paper pile-up is inevitable, especially if you’ve got a complicated tax situation requiring receipts and forms. Should you keep all this paperwork in a giant file cabinet, or can some things be digitized or shredded? Our guide will help you begin the process of lightening your paper load.

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When to Update Your Last Will and Testament

Do you have a Last Will and Testament? Excellent! It is an essential part of your estate plan, and will make things clearer and easier for those you leave behind. “I’m not rich, I don’t have an estate, so I don’t need a will,” you might think. An “estate” in this situation is considered as, “a person’s belongings, physical and intangible assets, land and real estate, investments, collectibles, and furnishings.” You don’t need to be a bazillionaire to have an estate.

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Downsizing For Retirement: A Step-by-Step Guide

by Rachel Christian
September 23, 2022
on RetireGuide.com

Downsizing for retirement takes planning, hard work and time. It involves organizing your current home, donating unwanted items, putting your house up for sale and moving to a new location. Some people hire experts to help, while others rely on friends and family for support.
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10 Shortcuts to Keep Kids Organized This School Year

With only a few weeks left before school starts, it’s time to start preparing for the new school year. Starting the year off with an organizational plan will definitely get your whole family off to a great start. This means less stress, calmer mornings, efficient evenings, and less tardiness. Get the whole family on the same page so your school day routines will be even better. We’ve got some A+ shortcuts to getting organized!

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Check These Annually: Your Credit Report, Social Security, and Social Media Privacy

There are many things we should all check periodically, but this article will focus on the three biggies you should definitely check on an annual basis.

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15 Realistic Tips to Lessen Screen Time for You and Your Family

It’s fairly common knowledge now that too much screen time is unhealthy for a wide variety of reasons. According to the Nielsen research group, American adults now spend “more than 11 hours per day watching, reading, listening to or simply interacting with media.” If we assume 6-7 hours of sleep in a 24 hour day, that leaves just 6-7 hours of time daily with no screen interaction. Yikes! This shows how addicted and reliant we have become to our screens, and that can’t possibly be a good thing. For kids, it’s even more important that screen time be limited. But how to go about it without going cold turkey? We’ve created a list of practical, realistic tips on how to lessen screen time for you and your family.

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