How To Support Your Child’s Mental Health

As a parent, it’s your job to support your child in a way that allows them to maintain good mental health and wellbeing. If you’re unsure where to start, I have teamed up with a senior school in Hertfordshire to share some advice. 

Promote Individualism

Try and create a home environment for your child where they feel completely safe to be themselves. Remind them that being different is what makes us special and its perfectly okay to have unique interests. Don’t shut them down if they have a different opinion to you because this will make them think that they’re not entitled to their own ideas and beliefs. Instead, ask them why they feel a certain way and show them that they are heard. You should also demonstrate an interest in the things they enjoy. The idea is to help them feel comfortable in their own skin because this will help them feel positive and confident.

Embrace Mistakes

If your child is punished every time they make a mistake, they may end up suffering with anxiety or stress. With this in mind, it’s worth trying to embrace mistakes. Let your child know that even grown-ups get things wrong sometimes; it’s how we deal with this mistake that’s important. Try and model effective ways to deal with mistakes or other challenging situations, like saying sorry if you’ve lost your temper, or learning what you should do differently in the future to avoid the same thing happening again. 

Talk About Emotions

Help your child understand the importance of opening up and sharing one’s emotions. Keeping things bottled up is never helpful in terms of mental health, so encourage your child to talk about their feelings. Show your child that it’s normal to talk about how you feel by doing the same thing yourself. For instance, you can say “I felt angry today because someone parked in my spot at work” or “I feel sad that I haven’t been able to visit my friends for a while”. Sharing your own emotions should help encourage your child to do the same thing. 

Set Goals

Encourage your child to set some goals, both short and long term. The sense of fulfilment they will experience when they achieve their goals will go a long way in promoting a positive mental attitude, because it will help them with their self-esteem and encourage them to have an optimistic approach with future aspirations.