The Importance of Mental Health for Kids

Being aware of and discussing mental health for kids is just as important as children’s physical health. This is because children are not exempt from bad mental health – and they can develop the same mental health conditions as adults. The only difference is that those conditions will manifest in a different way. 

As teachers, tutors, and parents, we have the responsibility to identify the changes in the way kids typically learn, behave, or manage their emotions, which can lead to potentially devastating consequences. We also have a responsibility to learn more about the symptoms and the dangers these changes pose, so we can make an early intervention and improve the childs’ mental state. 

This article makes a serious attempt to delve deep into the complex field of mental health for kids and provide meaningful insights that teachers and parents can learn from. Keep reading to find out what mental health issues are common in children, how to improve children’s mental health, and how to teach about mental health.

Before we begin let’s just say one more thing. This article is by no means medical advice and should not be used as a guide for diagnosis. Instead, it should be taken as an informational piece attempting to raise awareness for the elaborate inner world that drives children’s behavior. If you notice something worrisome, please contact your school’s psychologist, the child’s parents, and/or a pediatrician. 

What Is Good Mental Health for Kids?

How do we expect to be able to recognize early symptoms of mental health issues, if we can’t truly define a “healthy” mental state in kids? This step is the cornerstone on which further theories and postulates about mental health in kids are constructed. The real challenge behind it lies in two considerations.

First, the mental state and behavior of children change constantly as a result of their developing brain. It’s hard, if not impossible, to define something that’s expected to change individually and manifest subjectively. For example, kids learn how to resonate and feel based on their overall experience. And, they’ll express the same feeling or state in a completely different way based on their character and temperament.

Second, regardless of whether we’re talking about adults or kids, the mental state is personal and known only to the individual experiencing it. Behavior is a mere indicator that helps us guess what’s going on inside. Having the knowledge and tools to recognize and talk about one’s mental state is crucial. This is hard enough with adults, let alone children who have just begun learning to talk, read, and build a sense for themselves. 

What Do You Need to Know?

For the reasons mentioned above, you won’t find a definition for “normal” or good mental health, but instead a compilation of favorable conditions in which a child can maintain a positive mental state and prosper. 

The guidelines proposed by mental health specialists aim to overcome the two previously-mentioned concerns. 

First, mental health is not seen as a “fixed state” at different stages of life, but rather a dynamic process that sometimes includes tolerance toward certain “problematic” behavior, expressing sad emotions, and overcoming difficulties, individually, at the child’s own pace. However, there are some signs that are always a cause for alert and should not be ignored – we’ll discuss them in detail further in the article. 

Second, the most powerful tool we have in our hands to improve children’s mental health is teaching children about the importance of mental health and encouraging them to express their feelings and thoughts. To do this, we need to give them the vocabulary, the knowledge of psychological concepts, and the investigative “tools” to get to know themselves and create a supportive environment where talking about one’s feelings is normal and expected. 

We’ll begin by talking about the no-nos in mental health for kids, as well as discussing specific disorders that might underline those symptoms. Then, we’ll shift our attention to the ways in which teachers and parents can improve children’s mental health.  

Common Mental Health Issues in Children

The younger the child is, the harder it is to recognize mental health issues early on. Still, 1 in 6 U.S. children between 2 and 8 years old (17.4%) receive an official diagnosis for some mental, behavioral, or developmental disorder. This is worrisome, which is why you need to know the signs. 

Warning signs that a child might have a mental health issue/disorder include:

• Avoiding social contact and being uninterested in interacting (but, it can be normal behavior if the child is being bullied).
• Hurting oneself, hurting others, or talking about hurting oneself or others. 
• Talking about death (but, it can be normal to be interested in the concept of death if someone in their environment dies – even a pet) or suicide.
• Persistent sadness and being unwilling to play, explore, or socialize. Persistent means continuously for two or more weeks and when there’s no justifiable cause (for example, death of a family member or a close friend). 
• Outbursts of extreme irritability. A good example would be yelling, showing aggression, hysterical crying, or breaking things for little to no reason. 
• Out-of-control behavior that becomes dangerous. The child can harm themselves or others.
• Sudden and drastic changes in mood, especially if their mood keeps changing in patterns and there’s no justifiable cause. 
• Changes in eating habits, losing weight, or rapidly gaining weight. Throwing up after eating is always an alarm, either as a health concern or a potential mental disorder – bulimia. 
• Persistent insomnia, problems concentrating, being confused, or disoriented. 
• Sudden changes in academic performance or disruption in the child’s typical routine or habits. 

Keep in mind that these signs can manifest every once in a while as isolated incidents caused by day-to-day struggles. However, they’re alarming when they’re persistent, sudden, and without a justifiable cause. 

Here are the most common mental health issues in kids, along with tips on how to recognize them and take the best course of action.

Anxiety Disorders

Anxiety disorders or GAD (Generalized Anxiety Disorders) are most prevalent at around 12 to 17 years of age. Although, more than 7% (approximately 4.5 million) of children from 3 to 17 years of age have been diagnosed with anxiety (according to data gathered in 2016).   

Generalized anxiety disorders in children can be defined as persistent worry and fear the kids experienced on most days, over a lot of things that interfere with school responsibilities, homework, hobbies, social interaction, which results in a lowered quality of life. 

While it’s normal for children to worry from time to time, excessive worrying over a long period of time can severely affect their personal and social life. If left untreated, anxiety can sometimes progress and lead to depression. 

How to Recognize Anxiety in Children?

• Having insomnia or nightmares.
• Having trouble concentrating. 
• Constantly focusing on negative thoughts. 
• Asking questions that might indicate they’re afraid of something (for example “Can I die?”, “Why did XX get sick?”, “Can someone hurt me?”, etc). 
• Being clingy. 
• Being afraid to stay alone or sleep alone. 
• Having frequent headaches or tummy aches.  

What’s the Best Course of Action? 

First and foremost, make sure you have an open conversation about their anxiety and worries. Tell children that it’s okay and normal to feel worried or scared at times, but these things won’t go away unless we talk about them.

However, in more severe cases or when the condition is not getting better after a few weeks, seek professional help. Counseling with a psychologist or a mental health specialist is a common approach, and cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) is an effective method. However, sometimes anxiety medications might be prescribed, although this should be the last resort. 

Eating Disorders

Under the influence of today’s beauty standards, peer-pressure, and feeling out of control, teenagers are the most vulnerable group for developing an eating disorder. Anorexia nervosa (AN), bulimia nervosa (BN), and binge eating disorder (BED) are identified as the most common disorders in adolescents in the US and worldwide. Unlike other mental health issues, eating disorders are much more prevalent in females. 

According to the National Institute of Mental Health, one out of every 25 girls and women will have anorexia in their lifetime. This is why prevention should be the main approach in children approaching puberty. 

How to Recognize Eating  Disorders in Children?

Anorexia nervosa is characterized by low weight, an obsessive desire to be thin, fear of gaining weight, and food restriction. Bulimia is also characterized by the fear of gaining weight, but the child has episodes of binge eating followed by throwing up as means of restricting calorie intake, while binge eating is characterized by recurrent episodes of eating large quantities of food up to the point of feeling discomfort. 

Sudden and persistent changes in the eating habits of a child should always be addressed, especially if they’re accompanied by changes in weight. 

What’s the Best Course of Action? 

Eating disorders are potentially life-threatening conditions and early intervention is crucial. Talking about the risks and outcomes of eating disorders is a great starting point and can serve as prevention. However, if you notice the child already exhibiting symptoms, then a combination of therapy, education, and medication is the best approach. The exact combination will depend on the specific disorder and its severity. 

Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD)

ADHD is the most commonly diagnosed neurobehavioral disorder in kids and teens. It has the potential to severely affect the mental health of young children as it interferes with their ability to concentrate, study, and interact with classmates, as well as create feelings of being ‘different’, ‘dumb’ or ‘stupid’ compared to their peers. It’s characterized by severe hyperactivity and inattention incidents that last at least six months and interfere with the child’s academic and social life. 

The data and statistics on ADHD are devastating. In 2016, a study revealed that 6.1 million (9.4%) of children are diagnosed with ADHD in the USA. From that number, 4 million children are aged between 6 and 11, with the condition being far more prevalent in boys. 

How to Recognize ADHD in Children?

Recognizing ADHD in children can be harder than it seems. A lot of kids are misdiagnosed because they’re naturally more active and have a difficult temperament. To avoid this mistake here are some symptoms that indicate there’s something much more going on than the child simply being hard to handle.

• Sudden outbursts of anger, yelling, breaking things, and even physically assaulting others. 
• Having problems waiting for their turn in school and/or interrupting others without considering their feelings. 
• Being unable to finish school tasks and always being distracted by little things in the environment. 
• Not listening even when you speak to them directly, or call them by their name. 
• Being disorganized and forgetful.

What’s the Best Course of Action? 

To successfully treat ADHD in children, you must take a systematic approach. This means employing a combination of special education methods, counseling, behavior therapy, and medication (for severe cases and after all other approaches have failed). 

Children usually react to treatments differently and you should be prepared for a period of trial and error before you find the right approach that works for the child. 

Behavioral Disorder

Behavioral disorder is an umbrella term that encompasses different conditions, including the previously-mentioned ADHD, and even anxiety in some cases. Other behavioral disorders commonly seen in children include oppositional defiant disorder (ODD), conduct disorder, obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), and emotional behavioral disorder. We dedicated a lot of attention to ADHD because it’s by far the most prevalent disorder in kids and it has distinctive characteristics. 

Overall, behavioral disorders are defined by a persistent (at least six months) pattern of disruptive behavior that interferes with the child’s school and social life.  

How to Recognize Behavioral Disorders in Children?

Here are some of the symptoms that can help you recognize behavioral disorders in kids.
 

• Persistent feelings of unhappiness or even depression.
• Learning difficulties that are not caused by learning disorders, health problems, or other mental issues. 
• Manifesting inappropriate emotions and actions in different social situations.
• Having trouble interacting with friends and maintaining close relationships.
• Being spiteful or annoying classmates on purpose.
• Compulsive and repetitive behavior, almost like ritualistic patterns that become obsessive (for example, the child must write with a green pencil and refuses to accept anything else – when it’s not an isolated incident). 

What’s the Best Course of Action? 

Once you notice that a child has a behavior problem, you should talk to their parents and ask for a child psychologist to make an evaluation. Based on the specific disorder the treatment can include a variety of methods. For example, if the condition leads to anxiety or depression, then a systematic approach where all the problems are addressed and treated would be most fitting. 

For example, conduct disorder is most successfully treated with long-term psychotherapy counseling and a combination of psychiatric medication (in severe cases). 

On the other hand, children with oppositional defiant disorder should always go to therapy together with parents and receive social-emotional skills training, in addition to other more classical treatments. 

How to Improve Children’s Mental Health?

The outcome might look grim after reading about all the different ways in which children’s mental health can be impaired, but we dedicated the second part of our article to convince you that there’s actually plenty you can do to improve a child’s mental health. 

The best approach is always prevention, as it has many positive implications. 

First, this will raise awareness and give children the tools to recognize the symptoms in themselves and ask for help before the conditions get severe. It can also empower other children to act on behalf of their friends and ask for help when a classmate has problems that teachers or even parents might not see yet. This is especially valuable in the case of anxiety and eating disorders. 

Second, it will create a supportive atmosphere where children will work on their resilience so they can overcome those difficulties much easier. 

Finally, raising awareness through prevention helps remove the stigma that surrounds the topic which can directly improve the children’s mental health as they won’t feel ashamed or like being outsiders. 

Creating a Supportive Environment and Implementing Preventative Measures 

• Work on psychological and emotional fitness. Just like physical exercise, some children need to work on their emotional well-being. This will help them achieve mental stability, which in turn aids emotional, social, and cognitive development. They’ll be able to build stronger social relationships with the children around them and cope with problems more effectively. Further in the article, we’ll share specific mental health activities for kids that you can implement in the classroom.
• Talk with parents and maintain a close relationship. Children’s mental health is most dependent on whether they feel like they’re loved and supported at home. Teachers are also important authority figures, but parents are always the primary source of resilience or vulnerability.
• Make sure the classroom is inclusive and cooperative. It’s not uncommon for children’s mental health to be in jeopardy because there’s constant conflict, bullying, humiliation, and shame. While you can’t completely protect children from experiencing difficulties when building social relationships, you can make sure that they aren’t subjected to organized bullying or humiliation by dominant or popular students. 
• Talk to children about mental health issues. Schools have programs where talking about physical health is encouraged or even expected. Physical education and biology both touch on these subjects, while mental health somehow falls behind. This makes children vulnerable as they’re unfamiliar with the concepts, symptoms, or risk. Organize lessons and discussions where you’ll talk about mental health, the risks, and the most common mental health issues. Below, we’ll share some tips on how to teach children about mental health. 
• Make yourself available to kids. Let children know they can always come to you with their problems and show them that they can trust you. The key to winning their trust is for you to be honest, understanding, and never judgmental. 

Suggestions on Guidance and Discipline

Appropriate guidance and discipline are also pillars of good mental health. However, finding a balance between being too friendly and having authority can be quite a challenge. So, where’s the sweet spot? 

As a teacher, you should be firm and always follow through on your words as children model their behavior after you. In other words, set a good example. They don’t have to necessarily consider you as a friend, but they should respect you because they know you respect them too and have their best interest in mind. 

That being said, you should always be tolerant and kind. If you yell or show aggressiveness, they’ll reciprocate that behavior. Children need love and encouragement to develop optimally. 

Listen actively and get to know them. This will allow you to have a more personalized approach and utilize the right measures that will suit their temperament. 

Teaching Children About Mental Health

World Mental Health Day is just around the corner, which means this is the perfect opportunity to start the conversation and educate children about mental health. However, you shouldn’t stop there – make it a habit.

To start the conversation, you need to be extra sensitive and do it in an informal setting. This means that, instead of sitting in rows, arrange students in a circle where you can all see each other or organize small groups. 

Don’t make it a special activity. Children will feel most comfortable when they learn about mental health just like they would have learned about any other subject or topic. 

Ask open-ended questions and encourage students to share their thoughts and opinions. Tell them that there are no right or wrong answers and everyone’s feelings are valid and true because we’re all different and that’s good. This can also be a wonderful opportunity for children to develop empathy. 

When you feel a child struggles to express itself or can’t find the right words, help them by introducing emotional vocabulary, and encourage students to use the newly learned words. Our interactive worksheets about senses and feelings are a great starting point for learning new words and concepts.

Be patient, calm, and share your feelings, too. Being open and sharing your feelings makes a person vulnerable, which is why you need to lead by example, so children can feel it’s safe to start talking.

Below we’ll take a look at some specific activities through which you can teach children about mental health. 

Mental Health Activities for Kids

Once children are familiar with the concept and have acquired sufficient vocabulary, they can start working on activities through which they’ll get to know themselves better and learn new skills. 

Interactive Mental Health Worksheets. You can use our 24 in-depth ready-to-use pages to teach students about World Mental Health Day, its importance, and its purpose. This will introduce fun and meaningful tasks that children will enjoy.

Mental Health Games. Try not to get too serious or children might get scared and close up. This is why learning through games is a great way to make them open up and develop self-reflection skills (the ability to understand themselves). 

Self-Care Activities. Self-care has finally become such an important topic for grown-ups because, in the modern-day world, we’ve realized that it’s possible to spend so much time and energy on things and other people that we can easily neglect our mental well-being. To prevent this from happening to future generations, we must teach children about self-care from a young age. 

Mental Health Reading Materials. Learning about mental health can stretch beyond the classroom. Give children reading materials on mental health as homework, so you can discuss it later in class. Here are some popular children’s books on mental health.
 

• Can I Catch It Like a Cold?: Coping With a Parent’s Depression by Centre For Addiction And Mental Health (Author) and Joe Weissmann.
• Dear Allison: Explaining Mental Illness to Young Readers by Emma Northup Flinn.
• Please Explain Anxiety to Me!: Simple Biology and Solutions for Children and Parents, 2nd Edition (Growing with Love) by Laurie E. Zelinger, Jordan Zelinger, and Elisa Sabella.
• How Full Is Your Bucket? For Kids by Tom Rath, Mary Reckmeyer, and Maurie J. Manning.

Before You Leave

Good mental health is the foundation of a healthy, happy, and productive life, strong relationships, and resilience, instead of susceptibility to stress-induced diseases and conditions. Talking about mental health for kids and removing the stigma that surrounds this field is crucial in raising awareness and sharing proper information, so we can tackle this challenge successfully. 

Hopefully, you’ve learned a lot in this article. Although, we’re aware that there’s a lot more we can talk about when it comes to mental health, especially regarding the specific conditions and the right approach to finding the best treatment. But, you can always follow the links included in the article to dig deeper into this topic. 

On our site, you’ll find insightful interactive worksheets for teaching mental health to kids and plenty more. If you visit our blog, you’ll also find a lot of articles that will help you raise awareness about the importance of mental health for kids and implementing various classroom activities that can make it easier for you to tackle this issue.