Supporting Your Child's Mental Health
Mental health includes your child’s social, emotional, and psychological well-being. It influences how they react to stress, make strong choices, and interact with adults and other children. Mental health is important to your child’s happiness and success and there are simple ways that you can support them.
Show them that you love them
Praise them when they do well
Help them set and achieve reachable goals
Teach them how to calm and soothe themselves when upset
There are so many little things that you can do every day that will help your child maintain mental well-being. Please reach out for further education or local resources if you notice any signs of a mental health problem with your child, such as:
Saying negative things about themselves
Reactions that seem bigger than the situation
Crying easily or taking a very long time to calm down
Unexplained stomach aches, headaches or lack of energy
In Cortland County, we have local resources to help navigate the world of mental health including the Cortland County Mental Health Department and Family Counseling Services of Cortland County. If you would like further educational or community resources, please reach out to Jennifer at the Cortland Health Department’s Children & Youth with Special Health Care Needs program.
Written by Jennifer Hull, Children and Youth with Special Health Care Needs, Cortland County Health Department