The 1 telltale sign your child’s mental health is deteriorating

Would you recognise if your child’s mental health is declining? The fact is, more children are living with mental health issues than we realise.

In this article, we’ll explore briefly:

• what is child’s mental health?
• the 1 telltale sign your child may be developing mental health issues
• situations that can negatively affect mental health
• why good mental health is vital
• the part you can play to support and protect your child
• where to find qualified child counselling in Melbourne

Armed with this knowledge, you’ll be empowered to recognise the signs and take the right course of action for your child, such as seeking a qualified service to provide counselling for children in Melbourne.

 

What is child’s mental health?

Child counselling may be something you thought your child didn’t need. However, what we know is that children face challenges every day. How your child navigates those will depend heavily on the state of their mental health. Let’s explore what child’s mental health is.

When child counsellors talk about mental health in children, they are referring to a child’s social and emotional well-being; how they are travelling in the world with social connections and how they are managing their emotions.

The Mayo Clinic describes mental health this way, “Mental health is the overall wellness of how you think, regulate your feelings and behave. Sometimes people experience a significant disturbance in this mental functioning.”

How is the mental health of your child?

 

The 1 telltale sign your child’s mental health is deteriorating

The 1 telltale sign your child’s mental health is being affected is:

• your child feels angry, upset or sad most of the time.

Everyone can feel angry, upset or sad at times, but when it is a consistent trait with your child, then you need to act. Poor mental health in adults can begin when they are as young as 5 years of age. If you live in Melbourne, seeking qualified counselling for children in Melbourne is an important step in your child’s developing years, to prevent the issues having a negative impact on your child’s mental health and future well-being as an adult.

 

What can have a negative impact on children’s mental health?

It is an admirable ideal that every child lives a safe and healthy childhood, a life that is fun and free from problems. But we all know this is not a reality. There are numerous challenges that can affect the mental health of a child.

These include:

• family history and genetics
• problems at school, including attendance and academics
• changes to home or school structures
• peer pressure and relationship issues
• puberty
• family conflict
• loss and grief
• physical injury, illness or pain
• sleep problems.

 

Why good mental health is vital

A child’s mental health correlates directly with well-being and the way the child grows and develops into an adult. With good mental health, a child can navigate life’s challenges and react in a positive way to enjoy life and be happier.

Good mental health helps a child to:

• face challenges and deal with them effectively
• express and regulate their emotions
• feel good about themselves
• build healthy relationships with others
• adapt to change.

Is there anything you can do proactively to help your child?

 

The part you can play to support and protect your child

Seeing your child upset or not feeling like themselves can be challenging for any parent. Not knowing what to do to help, can be overwhelming. Reaching out for help can feel intimidating but the benefits of having a qualified counsellor to help support both your child and your family can make a huge difference. For a service providing qualified counselling for children in Melbourne, an option is to call Better Place Australia. This is a positive step forward.

You can also be proactive yourself. As a parent you can support your child in a number of ways.

These include:

• ensuring your child has opportunities to connect with you and have fun
• making the home environment one that is safe and inviting for your child to share their feelings and be heard
• putting the interests of the child first during decision making
• ensuring your child has meaningful connections and support networks inside and outside of the home
• protecting your child from parental conflict as much as possible.

Be proactive. Normalise help seeking and let your child talk about their feelings without judgement. This can help empower your child to understand themselves and communicate their needs better.

 

Better Place Australia child counselling

If you live in Melbourne, you could call Better Place Australia about their counselling for children in Melbourne services.

These include:

• Family mental health support
• Children and youth counselling
• Supporting children after separation (SCASP).

Child counsellors at Better Place Australia work to create safe and supportive spaces to empower children and their families and bring about positive outcomes.

Here are just some of the skills a child can learn through Better Place Australia child counselling:

• increased ability to better understand and manage feelings
• decreased levels of distress and challenging behaviours
• improved communication and problem solving
• increased ability to trust and form healthy relationships.

For help, contact Better Place Australia for qualified child counselling.