Disclosure: “I received a Target gift card to purchase LISTERINE® Brand products from Johnson & Johnson Healthcare Products Division of McNEIL-PPC, Inc. and The Motherhood as part of my participation in the LISTERINE® 21-Day Challenge. All thoughts and opinions expressed in this post are my own.”
Listerine 21-Day Challenge Follow Up
 
Pretty much exactly three weeks ago, I shared with you how Jake and I were doing the Listerine 21-Day Oral Health challenge. Our biggest issues were consistency. While we brushed every night and most mornings, we often skipped either flossing, rinsing or both. Flossing was pretty much the biggest challenge, as I tended to rely on the mouthwash to get between teeth. While it does help loosen and wash away some bacteria, it’s not a replacement for flossing.
 
Jacob’s biggest issue was timing. He views oral health care as an interruption to his “me” time. Taking five minutes out of his nightly relaxing time is a big deal to an 8-year-old. In the morning, he likes to wake up early and either watch TV or play on his computer. Again, brushing his teeth is not exactly a welcome distraction. So I had to find a way to work it into the routine without leaving him feeling like he was missing out on his fun time.
 

Balancing good oral health with a busy schedule and a forgetful mind

The first step was to make myself actually remember to floss, brush and rinse every night and day. Not just do one of the three, but all three every time. For me, that means leaving the Listerine products out in the open where I see them. Some people like to stash their oral health care products in a cabinet. I have so much stuff in my cabinets, I’ll never remember to look there! No one but me uses my bathroom, so honestly, I don’t really care if it’s company-ready all the time.

For Jacob, I created a schedule that doesn’t interrupt his play time. I let him stay up 5 minutes later at night and get up 5 minutes earlier in the morning. That’s really all it takes! Ten minutes off his sleep schedule really doesn’t make a huge impact, as he gets a good 9 hours of sleep every night anyway. He didn’t feel like I was taking away his fun time and I got what I wanted- a kid who doesn’t fight with me about brushing, flossing and rinsing. Sometimes you have to know when to compromise as a parent to reduce struggles. So how did we do? Overall, I think we did pretty good with the Listerine 21-Day Oral Health Challenge.

Still time to submit your Swish Selfie to help kids in need!

If you head over to the LISTERINE® Brand’s Facebook page, you can check out the details on how to complete the 21-Day Oral Health Challenge yourself. Even better, if you submit a Swish Selfie picture, Listerine will donate $5 to Oral Health America. PLUS, you could have a chance at $500 for yourself! The contest ends on April 27th, so get started on your own Listerine 21-Day Oral Health challenge and enter!

Don’t forget, you can find all your favorite Listerine products at your local Target!