Mental health is our well-being, it affects our attitude towards certain things in life. Everyone’s mental health is equally important. Parents often tend to not take the mental health of their children seriously. Which as a result creates a lot of internal conflict for the child.

Often parents want to have the final say in everything and see it as rude for the child to say how they feel or what they truly want. This is very unhealthy. According to research, in the U.S, 1.9 million children have been diagnosed with depression. Mental health is something that should not be looked down upon. It should be taken very seriously.

Parents tend to make decisions according to what suits their needs. Not considering how the child would feel in the process. My parents separated when I was young, years later they moved on with their lives and got married and started new families. In the process, I felt forgotten and disregarded. I felt as if they had gotten so caught up with what was happening in their lives and I was just expected to be happy as they are.

Unfortunately, that took a toll on my mental health. I felt neglected and not cared about and almost went into depression.

After that experience, I decided to take it upon my self to emphasise the importance of mental health between children and parents. As much as children can be the most forgiving, towards their parents, they do not forget. If someone says, a bad thing to a child today. It can have serious consequences on the child even years later. Depending on the depth of the statement.

There is an estimate of 23 youth suicides every day in South Africa and almost 500 attempted suicides. Unfortunately you can never wake a person and asked them why they killed themselves but most of the time is related to their mental health.

Recently, a girl was bullied at school for her looks. There was a video of her circulating, showing a group of girls humiliating her and abusing her. The same night, the girl committed suicide. As much as the actions of peers are not controlled by parents, parents do play a role in educating their child and developing their well-being.

There are a number of ways parents can nurture the mental health of their children.

“Actively listen and offer advice. Be consistent and keep your promises. Recognize positive choices. View their behaviour as a window to their needs and feelings. Respond calmly when their emotions are elevated.”