How to Nurture Positive Mental Health in Children

Positive mental health begins at home. A child's perception of themselves, their abilities and how they think others perceive them are based, in large part, on what parents and other caregivers say and do. Although most professionals agree that these perceptions begin when a child is a toddler, other professionals believe mental health development begins in infancy. This article will give you some tips on helping a child develop the positive mental health that will enable them to be a success in school and life.

Instructions

Difficulty: Easy

1. Acknowledge your child's accomplishments. Whether an infant, toddler, preschooler, adolescent or teen, children feel good when they are given praise. You can praise infants also as they learn to crawl, sit up, eat with a spoon and so forth.
2. Link praise directly to the task. For example, if your child offers to help with something, let them know that is nice of them to help and they have made your job easier.
3. Acknowledge improvements your child(ren) make. If an adolescent or teen improves in school or school related activities, tell them you can see they have been working hard. This will make the child feel better about themselves and lets them know you are proud of their attempts. It also gives children ownership over their own accomplishments.
4. Avoid statements and questions like, "what is wrong with you, can't you do anything right." This can make a child feel there is something wrong with them and that you don't love them when they do something bad.
5. Take concerns or fears seriously whether it is related to school, child care or peers. By listening and helping them resolve an issue in a calm manner, your child feels valued.
6. Let your child know in a positive way that like an article of clothing they are wearing, the way their hair looks, what they have done with their bedroom and that they have good taste.
7. Find a comfortable place in the home to gather for a weekly family meeting. Ask your child(ren) to share something about their day and then share something about your day with them.
8. Set clear and concise rules and boundaries for behavior. Make sure the rules are easy to understand for children of all ages and enforce those rules with consequences. How a child behaves at home has been linked to how they behave in school and the community.

Tips & Warnings

• When holding a family meeting, have cell phones, televisions, game consoles and radios turned off so the focus is on the family.
• Stand firm when children violate house rules or rules for behavior.
• Always take any issues your child has seriously. This includes teen issues. When children are bullied or feeling ashamed, feeling ugly or stupid, they need reassurance for healthy self esteem.