The first lockdown of 2020 seems like forever ago, especially now restrictions are non-existent and a big light is shining at the end of what has been a very dark tunnel.
However the scary thing is, many of us have got lost in that very dark place and are struggling to find a way out.
The Covid pandemic left its sibling behind, the mental health pandemic!
During these hard times (me Included) we tried to protect our children from some of the realities of what was happening and trying to educate them to the dangers at an age appropriate level.
Wow that was hard, trying to explain to a 3 year old why she was not allowed to see her friends, go to the park and see Grandma and Grandpop.
But as we sat there ourselves feeling this overwhelming fear, little did we know the true impact on our children’s mental health!
When we look at the figures in 2021 it really does take your breath away.
Nearly 40% of 6-16 year olds had experienced a deterioration in mental health since 2017!
Children have their own individual ways of communicating with us and some really struggle to verbalise their feelings, so as a parent where do we even start?
Every Mind Matters says to look out for:
- significant changes in behaviour
- ongoing difficulty sleeping
- withdrawing from social situations
- not wanting to do things they usually like
- self-harm or neglecting themselves
But remember we all have ‘those days’ but if these behaviours are lasting a long time or significantly affecting them day to day, this is when we need to think about getting some professional help.
This list is only a small snippet of some of the ways children may present an issue, but follow your gut instinct. If you think something is wrong, you know your child better than anyone!
1 in 6 children aged 5-16 are likely to have a mental health problem. That is 5 in a class of 30!
Children can be brutal, but now we have 5 children in a class that might be struggling and mentally vulnerable. So, what can we do to educate our children in empathy and compassion if they don’t know what ‘mental health’ is and how to recognise it?
In the last few months, I’ve done my research to find out what we can do, and I wanted to be proactive and to support our young minds to gain this valuable knowledge.
I am proud to say that I am now able to deliver an amazing Mental Health Awareness course aimed at 9-13 year olds.
The course covers topics such as understanding what mental health is, what mental health problems people may have and how we can look after our own mental health.
Things are changing in the way metal health is perceived but the only way we can continue to make change and improve the future of our children is to encourage talking, learning, empathy and compassion.
I know that what I want for my daughter is to be able to grow up in a stigma-free society, where people are not defined by illness, race, gender or sexual orientation.
What do you want for your children?
Written by Charlotte Kettle
Sources of information:
Mental Health of Children and Young People in England 2021 – wave 2 follow up to the 2017 survey – NHS Digital
Children’s mental health – Every Mind Matters – NHS (www.nhs.uk)