This week is Children’s Mental Health Week which aims to shine a light on the importance of children and young people’s mental health.
To mark the occasion, our School Nurses have drawn up some top tips on how young people, and parents and carers of children can look after their mental health and wellbeing.
- Sleep – establish a regular bedtime routine as sleep is very important for your mental wellbeing.
- Food – eat regular meals with a range of nutrients to keep your mind and body healthy.
- Exercise – regular exercise helps to reduce stress, anxiety and other mental health issues. It also boosts your self-esteem.
- Be yourself – dedicate time to do the things you enjoy.
- Keep a diary – write down positives and things you are grateful for to help you stay focused and grounded.
- Connect – spend time with family and friends. Healthy connections with loved ones can support good mental health and wellbeing.
Let’s Connect is the theme of this year’s awareness week, which runs from February 6-12. People thrive in communities and a lack of rewarding social connections can lead to feelings of isolation and loneliness which can have a negative impact on mental health.
The awareness week is run by children’s mental health charity Place2Be which has a host of free resources to enable families, schools and youth organisations to explore the importance of meaningful connections. You can download the resources from their website.
Our School Nurses support children with a range of issues including mental health and wellbeing. They run drop-ins for students at schools across Bristol, North Somerset and South Gloucestershire. Children aged 11-19 can also contact our School Nurses anonymously through our text messaging support service, ChatHealth.
ChatHealth runs from 9am-5pm from Monday to Friday, excluding bank holidays. The service is confidential and enables children to access support in the school holidays. The number for ChatHealth is 07312 263093.
Mental health support is also provided by our health partners Off The Record and Kooth. You can find out more on our website.