How to positively impact your child’s or grandchild’s mental and emotional health
Since COVID, mental health problems have increased exponentially. Unfortunately, these worrying numbers include both children and teenagers. Studies have reported that as a result of the lockdowns, there has been an increase in gaming addiction and internet use with a detrimental impact on mental health and psychosocial well-being (Fernandes et al, 2020). Fernandes et al (2020) also discovered that those who scored highly on gaming addiction, compulsive internet use (including binging on Netflix, etc), and social media use also reported high scores of depression, loneliness, escapism, and poor sleep quality, and anxiety related to the pandemic.
As a result, many parents and grandparents feel overwhelmed with the task of how to look after their child’s/grandchilds mental and emotional health. This is understandable. If you don’t know what’s out there, it’s hard to guide your child/grandchild towards activities that will enhance their growth, building both mental and emotional health.
Education is the key, and studies have proved that hobbies may be the answer (Fancourt et al 2020).
Enjoying a hobby triggers the natural reward system in your brain, flooding your body with feel-good chemicals/hormones such as dopamine, serotonin, oxytocin, and endorphins. These chemicals have the ability to lower stress, lower depression, and increase mood, which is an outcome that all parents/grandparents would want for their child/grandchild.
More importantly, having a hobby/hobbies can also equip your child/grandchild with coping strategies that they can employ in the future, especially when their life may become particularly challenging (eg. the pandemic we have all just experienced).
But where to begin?
We’re here to help you navigate your way through the wonderful world of hobbies, enabling you to make informed decisions on how to help your child/grandchild choose activities that will enhance their mental and emotional health and development.
..............then I thought we could follow that with a general intro into the hobbies that Hobbyco can provide. Further blogs would then go into more detail about each hobby, including their merits towards building mental and emotional health...including the other benefits ie coordination, creativity, etc...which ultimately lead to building mental and emotional health as well.
Thoughts?
Jane Foster
Dr. Jane Foster
MYTERN Founder, Director, and Educator
