The Whole and Healthy Family: Helping Your Kids Thrive in Mind, Body, and Spirit

Product Information

Kim H.-J., Kang H., & Johnson-Motoyama M (2017). The psychological well-being of grandparents who provide supplementary grandchild care: A systematic review. Journal of Family Studies, 23, 118–141. doi:10.1080/13229400.2016.1194306 [ Google Scholar] Cicirelli V. G. (2004). Midlife sibling relationships in the context of the family. The Gerontologist, 44, 541. [ Google Scholar]

As children and parents age, the nature of the parent–child relationship often changes such that adult children may take on a caregiving role for their older parents ( Pinquart & Soerensen, 2007). Adult children often experience competing pressures of employment, taking care of their own children, and providing care for older parents ( Evans et al., 2016). Support and strain from intergenerational ties during this stressful time of balancing family roles and work obligations may be particularly important for the mental health of adults in midlife ( Thomas, 2016). Most evidence suggests that caregiving for parents is related to lower well-being for adult children, including more negative affect and greater stress response in terms of overall output of daily cortisol ( Bangerter et al., 2017); however, some studies suggest that caregiving may be beneficial or neutral for well-being ( Merz et al., 2010). Family scholars suggest that this discrepancy may be due to varying types of caregiving and relationship quality. For example, providing emotional support to parents can increase well-being, but providing instrumental support does not unless the caregiver is emotionally engaged ( Morelli, Lee, Arnn, & Zaki, 2015). Moreover, the quality of the adult child-parent relationship may matter more for the well-being of adult children than does the caregiving they provide ( Merz, Schuengel, et al., 2009). Degeneffe C. E., & Burcham C. M (2008). Adult sibling caregiving for persons with traumatic brain injury: Predictors of affective and instrumental support. Journal of Rehabilitation, 74, 10–20. [ Google Scholar] Silverstein M., Gans D., & Yang F. M (2006). Intergenerational support to aging parents: The role of norms and needs. Journal of Family Issues, 27, 1068–1084. doi:10.1177/0192513X06288120 [ Google Scholar] The Whole and Healthy Family is rich with practical and accessible ideas to help your family grow healthier physically, emotionally, and spiritually. Jodi's ideas are straightforward and full of thoughtful wisdom and insight. This book is not a list of things to do but rather an invitation to look deeper at the systems and structures of your family and see where you can grow. Best of all, it is an invitation to know your children in deep and intimate ways. I walked away from The Whole and Healthy Family feeling inspired and empowered to help my family flourish."

Where to Purchase

If you have children under 4 and live in the Better Start area (Bowling & Barkerend, Bradford Moor and Little Horton), HENRY offers a range of free groups and activities to help you create healthy lifestyle habits.

I really enjoyed this. I loved seeing a parenting book combine all the facets of mind, body, AND spirit. This is an ideal read for a parent who is interested in embracing family minimalism, a very "crunchy"/healthy diet and approach to personal health (like—very very healthy!), prioritizing outdoor time as a family, parenting with the Holy Spirit, and homeschooling.

Merz E.-M., Consedine N. S., Schulze H.-J., & Schuengel C (2009). Well-being of adult children and ageing parents: Associations with intergenerational support and relationship quality. Ageing & Society, 29, 783–802. doi:10.1017/s0144686x09008514 [ Google Scholar] condemning western medicine and yet saying it has its value at times, then finishing off with “my oldest child has neurological issues, and I’m not saying it was a dose of Tylenol as an infant that did it, but it probably was. I understand you feel guilty if you gave it to your kids too.” Protein: 54g Day 3 Breakfast Easy Breezy Super Healthy Breakfast Egg Muffin – Creative Healthy Family Nutrition Breakdown (4 muffins)