MHM Magazine

and wear face masks and Social distance to protect each other. This way of living may feel like fiction to a lot of children, and for the unknown future, these changes to what we knew as ‘normal’ life will continue. Many children are left feeling distressed by the current events due to the pandemic.  WHAT EMOTIONS AND MENTAL HEALTH PROBLEMS CAN WE EXPECT TO SEE AMONGST CHILDREN  Regulating one’s emotions isn’t a guarantee when a child is born. These skills develop as a child grows up. A child learns how to regulate how they feel from their external environment and  through interactions with others in their world. Currently, children are being exposed to their world as being uncertain and scary. They also have had very little time and preparation to adjust to the drastic changes made to their daily functioning and their lives. This may leave them feeling: • Worried • Anxious • Confused • Helpless • Disappointed  • Frustrated  • Sad • Lonely • Bored  Children’s behaviour may change as a result of the emotions that they are experiencing, not being able to process them in the ways they knew or could with all the new changes. Changes in behaviour May look like: • Irritability or lashing out • Withdrawal  • Increased time spent on devices or screen time • Inattention or distractedness • Disturbances to sleeping patterns • Shyness • Tearfulness or emotional sensitivity • Worrying and reassurance seeking  • Self harm or self injurious habits Children may experience more serious mental health issues such as: • Generalized anxiety • Health anxiety • Separation anxiety • Panic attacks  • Obsessive compulsive disorder • Depression • Substance abuse  ARE ALL CHILDREN AFFECTED? Children experience mental health problems just like adults do. Their presentation of symptoms may just differ slightly. Depending on the age of a child, one can expect to see more physiological and behavioural symptoms of mental and emotional problems amongst younger children. This is due to their potential lack of verbal capacity and underdeveloped self-awareness. As children grow so does their ability to correctly identify how they feel in their body and what thoughts they are having. This then helps clinicians with accurately diagnosing mental health problems. Some Pre-adolescents may be better in being able to identify what they are feeling but are also limited in being able to externalize and to cognitively restructure distortions in their thinking. This may leave them feeling helpless and worried for the future. Adolescents may be better able to implement strategies to help them cope with how they feel but are also faced with many developmental challenges such as Issue 3 | 2021 | MENTALHEALTHMATTERS | 21 MHM