Emotional health & wellbeing
What is emotional health and wellbeing?
Like our physical health, we need to make sure we support our mental health and wellbeing too. Your adolescent children, like everyone, would benefit from having their own support and strategies in place to help them to feel emotionally and mentally well.
Within this guide, we will share some useful resources and links to more information that is aimed at parents and carers and some that are designed for adolescent children, so you can go through them with your child or share them with them to look at on their own.
What should good emotional health look like in my adolescent child?
| Signs of positive mental health | Signs of needing support |
| Stable mood | Low or changeable mood |
| Sleeping well | Sleeping more or less than normal |
| Eating well | Eating more or less than normal |
| Motivated to do things (for example, going out with friends or attending an activity) | Lack of motivation |
| Good self-care and hygiene | Neglecting self-care or hygiene |
| Occasionally worrying about things | Frequently worrying about things |
| Maintaining healthy friendships | Withdrawing from social circles |
| Maintaining good relationships with family | Seeming isolated or distant |
| Good school attendance | Not wanting to go to school or irregular attendance |
Parent and carer top tips to support your adolescent child
If your child appears to be struggling:
- Ask your child how, or if you can help at all.
- Be understanding and acknowledge your child’s feelings. Be careful not to lecture your child, or to be critical or dismissive.
- Avoid comments like, “there’s nothing wrong with you” or “just sort yourself out”, as this will only discourage your child from talking about their difficulties.
- Don’t always talk about mental health – try to talk about topics that you would normally talk about.
What we do know is that most adolescent children share with us that they would much rather speak to their parents or carers rather than professionals, so we want to provide you with some information to support you to do this.
National advice, services and information to help you
The great news is that there is lots out there to support you and your adolescent child. We found many that we could have shared with you, but we have kept it to just a few particularly good ones:
| Link and /or QR code | Description |
| How to support your child’s mental health | Place2Be is a UK child’s mental health charity. |
| How to support young people with mental their health | Mind is another UK mental health charity. |
| Parents Mental Health Support | Advice for Your Child | YoungMinds is another UK mental health charity. |
| Find local mental health support, starting with Barnardo’s | Barnardo’s offer support for mental health. |
| Top tips to improve your mental wellbeing – Every Mind Matters | NHS website ‘Every Mind Matters.’ |
What do I do if I need further support or advice, where do I go?
- Speak to your child’s school – they may be able to offer support, advice and signposting.
- Speak to your child’s health visitor or school nurse – they can signpost, advise and refer on if needed.
Where can I get local advice and support?
Hampshire:
Hampshire’s Back to Basics (online self-help tools) – Back to Basics is a Campaign starting to roll out over Hampshire to support families manage wellbeing and mental health within the home, creating resilience in families and less need for other services. Click on the link below to watch a range of short videos to find out more. Please note that you will need to create or log in to a Vimeo account, which is free and easy to join. Click here
Mental Wellbeing Hampshire – provides lots of information and details of a free helpline and messaging service. Click here
Isle of Wight:
Isle of Wight Family Centres – there are a range of different groups and services that island families can access but a great place to start would be with your local Family Centres. You can reach out to them for advice using the link click here or scan the QR code below:
Isle of Wight Youth Trust – is an independent charity, dedicated to supporting the mental health and wellbeing of young islanders and their families. Click here to access their website and contact details.