Safe Schools
May is Mental Health Month
Children’s Mental Health Week
Children’s Mental Health Week (May 5-11, 2024) is an annual campaign dedicated to raising awareness about the importance of children’s mental health and well-being. This week-long event aims to promote positive mental health among children and young people, provide resources for parents and educators, and reduce the stigma surrounding mental health issues in children.
Safe Schools joins the national movement to raise awareness about mental health and build an understanding of the significant role mental health plays in overall health and wellness.
In May, and every month, mental health matters.
Most mental health conditions do not have a single cause – they have many possible causes, called risk factors. The more risk factors you have, the more likely you are to develop a mental health condition in your lifetime. Mental health conditions can develop slowly, or symptoms can start to appear more suddenly after you have experienced a stressful event or big change.
- Trauma: situations like loneliness, seeing an accident, natural disasters, poverty, can all cause a trauma response.
- Biology and brain chemistry: a chemical imbalance in the brain is said to occur when the brain has either excessive or insufficient chemical messengers, called neurotransmitters, can increase the chances of developing a mental health condition
- Habits and lifestyle: Things like not getting enough high-quality sleep, regularly unhealthy food choices, lack of exercise, and poor stress management can all play a role in developing a mental health condition.
- Substance use: using drugs or alcohol can trigger a mental health condition by affecting mood, sleep, relationships, and physical health.
A child’s mental health is supported by their parents
A child’s healthy development depends on their parents—and other caregivers who act in the role of parents—who serve as their first sources of support in becoming independent and leading healthy and successful lives.
The mental health of parents and children is connected in multiple ways. Parents who have their own mental health challenges, such as coping with symptoms of depression or anxiety (fear or worry), may have more difficulty providing care for their child compared to parents who describe their mental health as good.
There are lots of things we can try to do to take care of our wellbeing. We have tips to help you:
- Try to relax and reduce stress
- Find ways to learn and be creative
- Spend time in nature
- Connect with others
- Look after your physical health
- Try to improve your sleep
It's not always easy to take care of our wellbeing. Or know where to start. You might find it helpful to:
- Only try what feels comfortable
- Give yourself time to figure out what works for you. Different things work for different people
- Go at your own pace
- Take it step by step. If the first step feels too hard, try to break that up into even smaller steps
Remember that good days for your wellbeing won't always look the same. We don't always have the same levels of energy or motivation. Be kind to yourself and do what feels right for you at the moment.
- Talk openly about mental health
- Educate yourself and your children about mental health
- Show empathy and compassion for those living with a mental health condition
- Be conscious of your language ‐ avoid words and phrases that perpetuate bias and discrimination
- Practice mental wellness
- Support online campaigns
- See the person, not the illness
SAFE AND DRUG FREE SCHOOLS DEPARTMENT
The mission of the Safe and Drug-Free Schools program is to help ensure that children are mentally and physically ready to learn and have healthy and supportive families, and to promote a safe community by equipping individuals with skills, knowledge, standards, and resources to live healthy lives.