Resources for your child’s mental health journey
All children can benefit from support on their mental health journey. Unfortunately, the number of children who need help through a mental health crisis is increasing, as 44% of high school students report that they persistently feel sad or hopeless, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
This heightened number of mental health struggles leads to an increased number of crises.
“A mental health crisis is any situation in which a person’s behaviors or symptoms put them at risk of hurting themselves or others and/or prevents them from being able to care for themselves or function effectively,” according to Children’s Hospital Colorado.
The Billings Clinic and its partners at Children’s Hospital Colorado are committed to keeping kids safe, which is why the hospital offers an extensive collection of resources to help you, as a parent or caregiver. Here is some of what you will find.
Mental health crisis signs
An important responsibility is to notice when your child shows signs of a mental health crisis.
“While no parent or caregiver wants to think about their child harming themselves or taking their own life, it’s important to know the signs and be prepared,” according to Children’s Hospital Colorado.
Common signs of a crisis include changes to eating habits, inability to perform daily self care, isolating from others, and sudden changes in energy. You can contact Montana crisis services for help.
Resilience and coping skills
Helping your child develop resilience and coping skills is critical to emotional health. These skills can help your child reduce stress and anxiety day-to-day and establish positive routines to prepare for, and hopefully avoid, larger crises. Children’s Hospital Colorado offers self-care and wellness resources to help children and their families navigate challenges and build resilience.
Spending quality time with your child is the best way to support them, but you shouldn’t stop there.
“After quality time, the most impactful thing you can do to support your child's mental health is to ensure that their most basic needs are covered,” according to Children’s Hospital Colorado.
Physical activity, nutritious meals, and adequate sleep are three impactful ways to support your child’s mental health every day.
Mental health tips for youth
You may have a variety of questions about protecting your child’s mental health. The archive of mental health articles covers an array of topics and can be filtered by age. They offer information about connecting with your kids, mental health benefits of physical activity, teen substance use, and more.
You can also find articles about behavior management, COVID-19, parenting, families, and other health care topics.
ChildrensMD mobile app
Children’s Hospital Colorado offers the ChildrensMD mobile app to help you understand physical and mental symptoms your child might be having.
“Our pediatric symptom checker and care guides help you make smart decisions on what level of care, if any, your child needs and how to provide speedy symptom relief for minor illnesses and injuries you can manage on your own,” according to Children’s Hospital Colorado.
Ways to support family members
While supporting children is the priority, Children’s Hospital Colorado also provides resources and tips on how to support a caretaker, including reaching out with empathy, encouraging self care, and making specific offers to help.
“If you have loved ones in your life who are caring for a child with a mental health condition, they could probably use some support — whether they have asked for it or not,” according to the hospital.
Billings Clinic continues to care for all your family’s healthcare needs.
