Many children struggle with mental health issues that often go unnoticed by the teachers. When a child is away from their parents, they leave behind their support system and their comfort zone, which makes them prone to experiencing an array of different emotions, and they’re not always positive. When at school, a child can struggle to keep up with the rest of the class, feel like they don’t fit in, or even be exposed to different forms of bullying. As a parent, it’s normal to feel the need to protect your children, but how do you protect your child’s mental health when they’re away at school? Read on to find out.

Choose the Right School

While many parents choose their children’s school based on its educational level, it is imperative also to consider its effect on your child’s mental health and how happy and safe they’ll feel there. When choosing a school, consider all factors and make sure you pick one that fits your child’s profile as well as their educational level in order to ensure that they don’t feel like the odd one out. To choose the right school, you should check online reviews, ask other parents, and find children who are already enrolled in the school you are considering and get their feedback on how they feel about it.

Communicate with Your Child

You won’t know your child is facing a problem if you don’t communicate with them. However, as your child gets older, it becomes more difficult for them to open up to you and express their emotions. To protect their mental health and be aware of a problem early on, as a parent, you should encourage communication and work on different forms of expression so that your child can feel comfortable talking to you. While it’s not always easy, you need to maintain the perfect balance of being there for your child and listening without taking action while, at the same time, knowing when to step in.

Work on Enhancing Their Skills

If your child struggles with their social skills, they may find it quite challenging to make friends, handle a situation, or express their emotions while at school. The mental health experts at https://www.abaconnect.com explain that a child could face a language barrier, have difficulty expressing their feelings, struggle with their social skills, or experience many other problems that can affect their mental health and their behavior when left untreated. However, when children get the treatment they require, they learn functional ways to help them express their emotions and deal with frustration and other issues both at home and at school. 

Exercise and Sports

While many schools offer PE classes, to protect your child’s mental health, you can encourage them to do sports to make sure they’re getting enough exercise. As your child becomes more active, they will be able to release a whole lot of negative energy while building up their confidence and learning new skills that will come in handy in different aspects of their life. Exercise also promotes the release of serotonin in the brain, allowing your child to feel happy and improving their sense of self and overall well-being. Because exercise helps children develop various social skills, it greatly improves their ability to connect, making them feel more comfortable in a school environment.  

Make Sure They Eat a Healthy Diet

You’d be surprised at how much food can impact a child’s mental health. When preparing your kid’s lunchbox, forget about the ready-made sugar-packed snacks, and think healthy instead. While this can include fruits and vegetables, you can also include other nutrient-rich snacks that keep them satisfied and happy, such as peanut butter sandwiches and nuts. 

Eating a healthy meal isn’t just good for your child’s body, but also for their overall well-being. When you choose meals packed with antioxidants, nutrients, and vitamins, your child’s brain produces endorphins, which improve their ability to focus and boost their mood. This, in turn, makes it easier to protect your child’s mental health and ensure that they’re happy and healthy at the same time. 

Being away from your child, even if it’s for a short period,  isn’t easy. But instead of keeping them glued to you in an attempt to protect them, you can work on particular strategies and ways to improve your child’s mental state, even when they’re away from you. By taking care of their health and teaching them the life skills they need to learn, you can make sure that they’re happy and healthy both at school and at home.