As a parent, you’ve got a lot to think about, and likely spend most of your time worrying that your kids are in prime health and happy. Even once your children have grown up and left home, this overload of concerns can leave your own health left well behind in your considerations, but did you know that this oversight in itself can disrupt the happiness of your family overall in the following ways? A guest writer shares why you shouldn’t ignore your health
Why you shouldn’t ignore your health
# 1 – Putting communication barriers in place
Open communication is the name of a happy family yet, when you fail to tap into your own health, you compromise this crucial element. After all, health issues including hearing complaints can, when left unaddressed, significantly hinder your ability to connect. By comparison, booking that hearing appointment or whatever else it is that you’ve left at the back of your to-do list for too long can both set the right example to your family, and finally provide them with practical tips for communicating with the hearing impaired, dealing with an illness, or whatever else you’ve got going on while you focus on getting better. All of which is going to bring everyone a whole lot closer together, and ensure more open honesty family-wide.
# 2 – Preventing you from parenting at your best
You might like to think that you can do it all, but parenting is tough at the best of times. Add an ongoing health complaint to the mix, and your abilities to manage everything will inevitably suffer. On bad days, this might even mean that you’re not able to show up for your family when they need you, which, when left unexplained, will inevitably lead to growing resentments, and even a feeling that you don’t care. This is, of course, the opposite of the truth, and addressing health concerns as they arise is the only way to prove it. That way, you can both keep your family in the loop about what’s going on, and address problems so that you never miss a recital, graduation, or family dinner again.
# 3 – Leaving health issues to escalate
While we don’t want to get too doom and gloom, it’s also worth remembering that the majority of health issues will worsen when left unaddressed. This can see even a small back niggle becoming a significant issue that either requires surgery or leaves you with greatly hindered physical capabilities. Even hearing loss can increase your chances of developing issues like dementia. In each instance, your children will inevitably come up against a whole load of suffering as they witness your decline, and may even have to take on carer roles, or cart you back and forth to appointments when you finally get things addressed. That’s not going to make anyone happy and is best avoided by just booking in for regular checks whenever you feel that you need them.
Your health might seem like an afterthought right now, but it probably shouldn’t be if you want your family to stay happy!