5 Ways to Help Support Your Child’s Mental Health
Mental wellness for your children begins at home.
We will have many different influences throughout our lifetime, but the influence of a child’s home has the most impact.
As a Child and Family Therapist, Parent Coach and someone who manages mental health struggles on a daily basis, there are three major tips I would like to share with you to minimize the risk of your child struggling with mental health issues.
Be Mindful
Mindfulness is the Number 1 thing that I teach to every single parent that I work with. Mindful parenting is understanding that every action has a reaction and thinking beyond today.
Every time that you speak to, discipline and praise your child, it will impact how he or she views himself or herself in the future. You have to think: what will my response to this mean for my child’s future?
Prioritize Regular Health Checkups
Prioritize both your child’s physical and mental wellbeing equally. Professionals recommend scheduling regular checkups to detect potential problems early and address them as soon as they arise. As part of an overall approach to your child’s wellbeing, ensure they receive annual health checkups – including physical evaluations and screenings that assess their cognitive and emotional state. Make sure that a hearing exam is on your agenda; hearing problems can cause distress and social isolation, negatively affecting mental health.
Connect
Attachment and connection are vital to the success of a child. I won’t go through all of the attachment styles but I will say that it is a continual process throughout your child’s life.
It does not end after you stopped doing skin-to-skin after six months. You can increase connection with your child through daily check-ins/check-outs, allowing them space to talk about whatever they want and through play.
Also, support them in the things they like to do and ask them about those things. For example, stop complaining about how much they play video games and play with them or talk to them about the game, but choose wisely when you decide to do this.
Take Care of Yourself
You cannot pour from an empty cup nor can you give 100 percent to your child when you are on 10 percent.
I know mom guilt tells you that no one else can take care of your child as well as you can, and you’re right. However, when mom guilt tells you that you are terrible for letting your child spend the night away from home or for even taking a few hours away, you are wrong! You have to take care of you so that your child is getting the best version of you when they need you.
Ensure They Are Getting the Right Help
One of the things that a lot of parents underestimate the importance of when it comes to looking after their child’s mental health is to ensure they are getting the right professional support. There could be things impacting their mental wellness that you are not aware of or may not be equipped to deal with properly. Making sure you get them in touch with professionals who are able to tackle this is super important.
This means you need to be getting in touch with experts like the Eva Carlston Academy who are fully equipped to provide the perfect environment for your kid to thrive and deal with overcoming their mental health challenges. This is something that can really help to make a difference in your kid’s life and allow them to ensure that they are getting the help they need moving forward.
Khia Glover is a Licensed Social Worker, Child and Family Therapist and Parent Coach. Khia uses her knowledge and mental health experiences to teach Black moms tools to raise mentally healthy children. She has been working with children and families in various ways for more than 10 years and is passionate about children’s mental health. Khia helps mom’s through one-on-one and group coaching. Connect with her here: www.notesbykhia.com, @notesbykhia or on Facebook at https://bit.ly/2PfSOQj.