Mental health tells us about psychological well being of a person. It can also be described as the absence of mental disorder.

According to positive psychology or holism mental health may include an individuals ability to enjoy life, express emotions and, can cope with the normal stresses of life, can work productively and fruitfully, and is able to make a contribution to his or her community. Here my concentration area is Mental Health of Children. Mental health of a child is depending on many factors and many factors can drag a child to mental illness. Here we will discuss different aspects related with a childs mental health

Mental health of children:

Children and young people are very sensitive to what goes on around them and, without the right support, can become distressed about situations they find hard to deal with. Sometimes, however, problems arise that can lead to serious difficulties in the future. Anyone who is suffering from mental distress, whatever their age needs a lot of support. Mental health disorder is very common in all over the world. We can see it in every developed, underdeveloped or developing country. For example:

The most recent UK

figure indicating that 10% of 5-16 year olds had a diagnosed mental health disorder and the current US figure indicating that a mental illness occurs in 20% of US children during any given year. Even in Bangladesh its a very common scenario.

Common mental illness of children:

Common mental health disorders and difficulties encountered during childhood and the teenage years include:

Anxiety disorders: Children with anxiety disorders respond to certain things or

situations with fear and dread, as well as with physical signs of anxiety (nervousness), such as a rapid heartbeat and sweating.

Disruptive behavior disorders: Children with these disorders tend to defy rules Pervasive development disorders: Children with these disorders are confused in

and often are disruptive in structured environments, such as school.

their thinking and generally have problems understanding the world around them.

Eating disorders: Eating disorders involve intense emotions and attitudes, as well

as unusual behaviors, associated with weight and/or food.

Elimination disorders: These disorders affect behavior related to the elimination

of body wastes (feces and urine).

Affective (mood) disorders: These disorders involve persistent feelings of sadness

and/or rapidly changing moods.

Schizophrenia: This is a serious disorder that involves distorted perceptions and

thoughts.

Tic disorders: These disorders cause a person to perform repeated, sudden,

involuntary and often meaningless movements and sounds, called tics. Other mental disorders are ADHD (attention deficit hyperactivity disorder); anxiety and a range of related anxiety disorders ranging from simple phobias to social anxiety, generalised anxiety disorder and PTSD (post-traumatic stress disorder); autism and Asperger syndrome (the Autism Spectrum Disorders, or ASD); behavioural problems; obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD) and psychotic disorders.

Ideal environment for good mental health:

A loving family is very important for the development of a good mental health of a child. Loving parents and family always work as positive stimuli here. In those family where a child dont experience divorce, fight between parents or other family problems there a child possess a good mental health. As well as a good schooling is very much important here. If the child is enjoying its school, the teachers are friendly, friends are nice then it helps them a lot in improvement of mental health.

Even the companies of the child influence a lot in the development of its mental health. The good company and friends always count as a positive energy here they provide the child some positive charge which helps a lot. So all in all, these options needed t be present in a childs life to develop or possess a good mental health.

Common signs with children with mental disorder:

It's perfectly normal for many children to feel sad, angry or upset from time to time and this can be expressed through disruptive behaviour or moodiness. As long as these feelings do not last or interfere too much in their ordinary activities there's probably nothing to worry about. If a child seems to be experiencing distress which is more severe or long lasting it could be a sign of mental health problems. Signs to look out for might include:

Decline in school performance poor grades despite strong efforts regular worry or anxiety repeated refusal to go to school or take part in normal children's activities hyperactivity or fidgeting persistent nightmares persistent disobedience or aggression frequent temper tantrums depression, sadness or irritability

When children are mentally upset, their behaviour can be unpredictable. They can show some other signs too For example, they may:

become angry and frightened or aggressive seem so depressed that you are afraid they will harm themselves refuse to accept that their behaviour is in any way unusual feel unable to cope with day-to-day life behave in a hostile manner towards you

These signs will help a parent to identify whether his child is suffering from mental illness or not.

Some causes of mental disorder in children:

There are some common reasons what drag a child to depression. They are given below:

losing a parent or loved one through family break-up or bereavement problems at school, such as fear of failure or being bullied having a parent who's depressed or anxious witnessing repeated arguing or domestic abuse feeling lonely or left out the death of a pet a new stepfamily physical, emotional or sexual abuse

Events that aren't obviously traumatic, such as moving house, losing a favorite toy, the arrival of a new baby or being left for a long time with a person they don't know, can also cause long-term distress.

Solutions and suggestions:

It's important not to let difficulties continue for too long, as they can destroy a child's confidence and self-esteem. They may also resurface later and seriously affect the young person's future. There are lots of types of help available, including individual counseling,

family therapy, behavior therapy and group work, art therapies, including drama, music and dance. Lets discuss about them 1. Individual counseling: individual counseling is always very helpful for a child. Its very necessary when a child is facing a lot of stress in life. Even if parents take a child for individual counseling at the initial stage of mental stress then it provides a good result. 2. Family therapy: family therapy is also very helpful in these cases. 3. Behaviour therapy and group work: in western countries its very common to take the child for behavior therapy and group work for progress. 4. Art therapies, including drama, music and dance: Different art therapies will help a child to develop its mind in a positive direction. Drama is very imaginary, music can help a child to lose in beautiful world of sounds and dance is known as freedom of life. So all these can help a child to reduce its mental stress and disorders.

Conclusion:
At the end we can say that, today who is a child tomorrow he will be a leader, citizen or ambassador of hope. So in this case, its very necessary that the mental health of a child is healthy. Today if children are suffering from mental disorder or illness then it is totally our failure. And its result will be a society with no hopes. There is no alternative of a good family structure, loving family and a clean society for the good mental health of children. And; that will lead us to a better future and a shining tomorrow.

References:
1. www.youngminds.org.uk 2. www.parentlineplus.org.uk

3. Medicinenet.com 4. National Alliance on Mental Illness , Reviewed by Marina Katz, MD on February 20, 2012 5. NHS Confederation Mental Health Network

ASSIGNMENT ON GEN 205

MENTAL HEALTH OF CHILDREN

SUBMITTED TO: Dr. Parveen Huque Adjunct Faculty Department of Social Sciences East West University

SUBMITTED BY: MD. Marzuq Chowdhury ID: 2009-1-10-036 Section: 02

Date of submission: 1st August, 2012