Parent/Carer Support

Tips for wellness from our Mental Health In Schools Team

“Your future depends on your dreams, so go to sleep.” — Mesut Barazany

Rest

It is important to work hard, stay motivated and set goals to achieve in life. It is also important to not overwork yourself and get enough rest to help manage your stress and unwind so you can stay motivated and prevent burnout in the long run.

Rest is vital for your mental health as it can improve your concentration, memory, critical thinking, and thinking, planning for the future, problem-solving, mood, immune system, reduce stress, and helps your body’s metabolism and physical recovery.

Rest can be difficult to define because it can look different for everyone. It can be anything physical or mentally stimulating that improves wellbeing such as going for a walk, singing, drawing, cycling, playing games, watching TV/streaming, exercising, playing sports, reading, dancing, listening or creating music, writing, crafting, relaxing or anything else you enjoy!

Our Top Tips For Rest

1. After you have done something important like studying, chores or homework, reward yourself by doing something enjoyable that helps you recharge.
2. Set aside enough time each day for hygiene. This can be showering, brushing teeth, washing hair. These regular activities can help you to relax.
3. Create a healthy sleep routine by avoiding caffeine or sugary drinks near bedtime, ensure you are warm and comfortable in bed and limit screentime.
4. Engage in some mindfulness or restful activity, such as meditation, reading, listening to calming music, podcasts or bedtime stories. The Calm App has lots of meditations, soundscapes and stories.

Please contact [email protected] for information and advice about mental health and well-being for your child and your family.

Tips for wellness from our Mental Health In Schools Team

“It’s not that I’m so smart, it’s just that I stay with problems longer” – Albert Einstein 

Persistence

Persistence is all about keeping going, even when times are challenging. It is normal to want to give up when you are going through something difficult, but if you can stick with it and overcome the obstacles, you will be closer to achieving your goals.

Having a growth mindset will help us persist, which means you believe you can learn, grow and develop your skills by putting in the hard work and practise. This can be tricky, so make sure you reach out to friends and trusted adults to support you.

Our tips for persistence:

1. Break the goal down into smaller steps. You can set yourself smaller goals that are more achievable, to help you reach your ultimate goal. Make sure the smaller goals are linked to your ultimate goal; this may help to encourage you to keep going, as you will be able to measure your progress.
2. Try something new – this could be a new hobby, sport, craft activity, or puzzle. Having a go at something new can help to develop your persistence, whilst also having fun. You might find it challenging at first, but you will receive a greater sense of reward and achievement by sticking with it!
3. Positive self-talk – instead of saying “I can’t”, add “yet” onto the end of the sentence. This tells your brain that it might be difficult, but you will get there in the end.
4. Talk to yourself like a friend – we are often kinder to our friends than we are to ourselves, when we go through challenging times. Practise talking to yourself like you would talk to a friend! What advice would you give if a friend told you they were rubbish at something? What would you say if they felt they wanted to give up?
5. Practise mindfulness. A good way to improve our mental wellbeing is by paying more attention to the present moment and the world around us. Think about sounds and smells around you, what can you see, and how does this make you feel. By being more aware, this can improve our mental wellbeing and enable us to improve skills such as being persistent.

Please contact [email protected] for information and advice about mental health and well-being for your child and your family.

Tips for wellness from our Mental Health In Schools Team

“The best remedy for those who are afraid, lonely or unhappy is to go outside.” – Anne Frank 

Get Outdoors

Spending time outdoors is great for your body and mind! It can improve your mood, reduce feelings of stress, improve your confidence, helps you to be more active and can reduce loneliness.

How to get outside more:

1. Take a Nature Walk
   Find a park, trail, or even your garden and take a walk. Look around for birds, trees, and flowers that you can spot. You could try taking photographs and share them with a friend.
2. Play a Sport or Game
   Whether it’s football, netball or running, outdoor sports are a great way to get moving. They also help us develop our communication skills when we play as part of a team!
3. Do a Scavenger Hunt
   Make a list of things to find outside—like a particular leaf or a butterfly—and go on a hunt to find them!
4. Bring Your Hobby Outside
   Do you like drawing, reading, or listening to music? Try doing it outside! Find a comfy spot on the grass and enjoy your favourite activities in the fresh air.
5. Have a snack outside
   Try taking a snack outside and eating it while focusing on the food and what is going on around you.
6. Watch the Stars
   On a clear night, lie on a blanket and look up at the stars. You might even see a shooting star or spot constellations.
7. Meet up with a friend outside

It can be helpful to get outdoors every day, even if only for a short time. You could try walking to a friend’s house or to the shop instead of travelling by car or getting public transport. You could try to make getting outside part of your daily routine, whether it is riding a bike or sitting in a garden or park while you listen to music.

Please contact [email protected] for information and advice about mental health and well-being for your child and your family.

Tips for wellness from our Mental Health In Schools Team

“Mistakes are proof that you are trying.” – Unknown 

Challenges

Throughout our lives we are going to experience different challenges, both big and small. There will be times where these challenges are exciting and maybe other times where challenges could feel scary and uncertain. These different challenges will push us to try new things, build our resilience and teach us new things about ourselves and the world around us.

When taking on challenges, we learn that we can work towards goals, overcome any obstacles and be resilient even when something is difficult. A growth mindset can help us take on new challenges, it builds our confidence to have a go at things, increases our self-esteem and encourages us to keep trying, even if something doesn’t work out the first time!

Our top tips for challenging ourselves:

1. Set yourself some goals you would like to reach this time next year (long term goals).
   Perhaps these can be things you’ve always wanted to do but never tried before. Break your goals down into medium-term goals and short-term goals (goals you can set to work towards the long-term goal in a few weeks or months).
2. Ask for help when needed. Challenging ourselves is not about getting through difficult times alone…sometimes we need a helping hand and that is okay!
3. Push yourself out of your comfort zone this week. You might want to try a new food, learn a new hobby, start a conversation with a different friend, or put your hand up in a lesson at school. Can you think of a SMART goal you would like to challenge yourself with this week? Click this link to learn more about SMART goals.
4. Read books with characters who overcome challenges. What strategies did the characters use to push through them? Click this link to see a list of books that help children build resilience..

ThanksKids recognises the efforts and kindness of children and young people, and thanks them with personalised #NHSStars certificates. If you know a child or young person that deserves recognition for going above and beyond, don’t wait, nominate! [email protected].

Please contact [email protected] for information and advice about mental health and well-being for your child and your family.

Tips For Wellness from our Mental Health In Schools Team

“If it makes you happy, do more of that.” – Unknown

Self-Care

Self-care is all about the little things we do to help ourselves feel better or to keep ourselves feeling
good. This is a great way to look after our mental health and wellbeing. Self-care involves ‘checking
in’ with yourself and thinking “how do I feel today?” and understanding “what do I need today?” Self-care looks different for everybody. What works for one person may not work for someone else!

Our tips for self-care:

• Taking time-out when we are feeling overwhelmed.
• Making time for an activity which makes us feel good e.g., taking a bath, listening to music,
  going for a walk, or playing a game you enjoy.
• Doing the basic things to look after ourselves e.g., eating and sleeping well.
• Practise self-care by asking yourself the questions below:
  • How do I feel today?
  • What do I need today?
  • Do I need physical or mental self-care?
  • When can I add self-care into my day?
• Make time to do it! Repeating these Self-Care check-ins at least once each day can help improve our mental health.

Make time for a relaxation activity. Scan the QR codes, or clink on the links below for more information around self-care. Why not try the mindfulness activities in the QR codes below too:

Please contact [email protected] for information and advice about mental health and well-being for your child and your family.

Dimensions Tool

Follow this link for free online personalised self-care information and support for adults and children in Coventry and Warwickshire.

Tips for wellness from our Mental Health In Schools Team

“Let food be thy medicine and thy medicine shall be thy food.” – Hippocrates

Nutrition

Nutrition refers to the nutrients in food and how our body uses them to stay strong and healthy. There are lots of positive benefits for our physical health, nutrition is also really important for our mental health!

Our brain works hard taking care of our thoughts, movements, breathing, heartbeat and senses (even when we are sleeping!), so we must fuel our brain with nutritious foods to help us function. This can help us to think clearly, increase our energy levels and support concentration. What we eat also affects our mood too!

Our tips:

1. Get involved in the cooking – Can you help your parent/carer to prepare dinner? This can
   be a fun way to spend time with others and learn a new skill.
2. Make it fun – There are lots of different ways different foods can be prepared. You could try
   experimenting putting different food together to see what you like and don’t like.
3. Try something new – When was the last time you tried a new food? It can be exciting to find
   out what food we like and don’t like. Also, our tastes can change as we grow and develop. See
   if you can set yourself a challenge to try a new food this week.
4. Keep Hydrated – Dehydration could lead to headaches, difficulty focusing and may impact
   sleep. Try to ensure you are regularly drinking water, it can be useful to bring a bottle of water
   to school every day to remind you to stay hydrated!

Please contact [email protected] for information and advice about mental health and well-being for your child and your family.

Tips for wellness from our Mental Health In Schools Team

“Time you enjoy wasting is not wasted time.” – Unknown

Relaxation

Relaxation is when our mind and body is free from stress and tension. Research has found that this can help us to think clearly, concentrate, sleep well, feel more confident and even boost our immune system!
Relaxation can look different for everyone, and it can be helpful to try a few different relaxation techniques to see what works best to make you feel happy and rested.

Our Tips for Relaxation:
1- Try some breathing exercises, such as finger breathing or square breathing. Breathing exercises are great as you can do them in any place, at any time. Follow the link to try flower and candle breathing!

2- Drawing or colouring can help you to express your feelings and focus on something peaceful. This is a great way to relax your mind!

3- Practice mindfulness by taking a break away from any screens and devices. This could be going on a walk or being outside in nature. Try to use as many of your senses as possible, think about what you can see, hear, smell, touch and even taste! You could even try cloud watching to calm your mind.

4- Stretch it out, practice yoga to stretch out your muscles to relax and reduce tension. Try following the link for a yoga video!

5- A warm bath or shower can be a soothing experience that helps to relax muscles and calm your mind. You could make it extra relaxing with quiet music and bubbles!

Please contact [email protected] for information and advice about mental health and well-being for your child and your family.

Tips for wellness from our Mental Health In Schools Team

“We carry with us, as human beings, not just the capacity to be kind, but the very choice of kindness.” – R.J. Palacio

Kindness

Kindness means being friendly, generous, and considerate to others. It’s all about showing care and respect through our actions and our words.

Random Acts of Kindness Day is celebrated each year on February 17th, however you can practice random acts of kindness all year round

Here are some easy ideas to spread kindness:

• Give compliments – A genuine compliment can make someone’s day brighter.
• Hold the door open for someone.
• Share a smile – Smiling at people can help to boost their mood.
• Send a thank you note – Write a note of appreciation to someone who has helped you.
• Be a good listener – Sometimes, all someone needs is someone to talk to.
• Help your teacher – Offer to hand out something to the class or do something to help them.
• Ask someone how their day is going – Asking someone about their day can make them feel cared for and happier.
• Pick up a piece of litter.
• Offer to help someone at home.

Why is being kind important?
Kindness is contagious! When you show kindness, it inspires others to do the same. When you are kind to someone, it can help them to feel happy, it can brighten their day and boost their mood.

Kindness can help to make schools, homes and communities more welcoming and friendly. When people are kind, everyone feels more comfortable which can lead to better relationships and friendships.

Please contact [email protected] for information and advice about mental health and well-being for your child and your family.