"Talking with your child about emotional topics, such as their mental health, can feel uncomfortable. This can be due to the stigma involved, lack of information or even fears of possible blame. It may seem much easier to talk about other medical problems, such as food allergies, asthma or diabetes. There is typically more information available about those conditions, they are easy to diagnosis with medical tests and people seldom think they are anyone’s fault."
Check out this great article from the National Alliance of Mental Health to read lots of different ideas on how to start this conversation with your child. There's even a coloring activity book so be sure to go check it out: https://buff.ly/3L1xnwO
Know what to expect, here are some of the topics covered :
Make An Analogy To A Medical Problem
Give Them Concrete Explanations
Listen To Them And Validate Their Experiences
Be Sure They Know This Is Not Their Fault
Have Frequent Conversations
Additionally, here is a great poster for ways you can promote positive mental health with your child. This shouldn't be something you do occasionally, but something you promote much as you can! Think daily or weekly. Making this a priority in their life, and yours, teaches them the importance of nurturing their mental health right along with their physical health.
