Introduction
One in six people are between 10–19 years old, and these are
the most important years of the development of any person, including physical,
emotional, and social changes in a person. At this point in life, adolescents
can be said to be more vulnerable to mental health because of several
challenges that they undergo at this age. Reducing exposure to adversity,
facilitating socioemotional learning, and assuring access to care are the
strategies that will help adolescents set up a healthy and thriving life during
adolescent and adult years.
These are challenges that cannot possibly be overemphasized,
given the fact that neglect of adolescent mental health will have its major
implications later in adulthood, where general physical health and mental
well-being will be compromised to the limitation of opportunities to lead
fulfilling lives.
Mental health determinants
Adolescence, thus, is a critical period of life in which social and emotional behaviors important to mental health develop. The cardinal elements of this development include sleep habits, physical activity, coping or problem-solving skills, and emotional regulation. In all these aspects, the supportive environment built by the family, school, and larger community provides the nurturing effects on children while passing through adolescence.
Several factors influence mental health across the
adolescent years. The more risks faced by adolescents, the graver the possible
impact on their mental health. Stressors include adversity, peer pressure, or
identity searching. Media and societal expectations of girls and boys further
heighten the discrepancy between their real lives and their future
expectations. Other critical determinants include the quality of home life and
peer relationships. Violence, particularly sexual violence and bullying, along
with severe parental behavior and marked socioeconomic problems, all serve to
potentiate the risk of poor mental health.
Some adolescents, due to their living conditions, stigma,
discrimination, exclusion, and/or lack of access to quality support services,
are more susceptible to psychological problems. These will include adolescents
who are living in humanitarian or unstable environments; adolescents with
chronic illnesses, autism spectrum disorder, intellectual disabilities, or
other neurological conditions; pregnant teens; young parents; people in early
or forced marriages; orphans; and adolescents from minority ethnic or sexual
backgrounds or other marginalized groups.
Seven tips for
introducing Mindfulness with children
- It all begins with you. Just as you wouldn't teach a child to swim if you have never been near water yourself, it's about modeling first. You know your child best, so trust your instincts in gauging his or her readiness for mindfulness practices.
- An explanation that may be helpful in understanding mindfulness is the snow globe analogy: When our minds are racing, confused, or in turmoil, it is like a snow globe that has been vigorously shaken; clarity is lost. Instead, if we take a few moments to breathe slowly and calmly, the snow-our thoughts-will fall to the bottom, and we begin to see more clearly.
- Keep mindfulness exercises short--in general shoot for one minute of practice per year of age. Never force a child to meditate. This isn't homework. It's about being. To generate interest in mindfulness for them, be creative, playful, and gentle in your approach.
- The concept of exploration of the breath can be made playful by blowing bubbles or windmills among the younger children. The majority of older children enjoy counting their breaths to inhalation up to seven counts, and to exhalation, eleven counts.
- Adapt practices to be age-appropriate: "Belly breathing" works with toddlers and preschoolers-place a favorite stuffed animal on their belly and watch its action as one inhales and exhales. Older children may place one hand on their own belly, noticing the sensations while they count the breaths. Let them know it is normal if the mind wanders; gently bring their focus back to the breath without judgment.
- For children who have trouble breathing-for example, with asthma or panic attacks-concentration on the breath may be even painful. If so, simply encourage them to focus attention on their hands or feet.
- Mindfulness is not only about being still; one can bring mindfulness into movement, too, as one pays attention to bodily sensations while walking, running, dancing, or even playing sports. Also, mindfulness in everyday actions, for example, eating or showering or brushing of teeth, can be brought about by paying attention to all our senses rather than getting lost in the cobweb of thoughts. This approach keeps us present and helps us retard the pace of life.
Emotional disorders
Anxiety disorders are the most common form of emotional disorders in teenagers. Anxiety disorders are problems in which feelings of worry or panic are extreme enough to interfere with functioning. Anxiety problems are significantly more prevalent among older than younger teens. Anxiety disorders affect an estimated 4.4 percent of children aged 10-14 years old and 5.5 percent aged 15-19 years old. An estimated 1.4 percent of teens aged 10-14 and 3.5 percent aged 15-19 experience depression. Anxiety and depression also share symptoms of sudden mood swings.
Anxiety and depressive disorders easily intervene in school attendance and performance. These disorders often turn into the social isolation of the child, which will increase his or her feelings of loneliness and withdrawal. Major depression might lead to suicidal ideation or attempts in extreme measures.
Helping Your Child Focus and Concentrate
Concentration is a muscle to which one needs to give
training quite regularly in order for it to grow strong. While some children
might innately have this attribute, all children can learn strategies and
practice exercises which will help them improve their concentration skills
along with their attention span. This is a very important skill since, once
they go to school, students have to pay attention for several hours; and as
they grow older, even more so in case of extracurricular activities.
Most children can easily focus on things that are more fun
and interesting to them. But when the activity is a tedious, complicated, or
less interesting, it may well become a big challenge for them to hold their
concentration. It should be cultivated in the child to focus on a particular
work since it helps in learning and development, thereby building up the
self-esteem and positive self-concept of the child.
Concentration shares some elements with the related concept
of mindfulness, which is receiving a great deal of attention both within
psychology and in the popular culture. Mindfulness is the ability to focus
one's attention on a single point in the present moment. It has been linked to
a variety of positive mental health outcomes, including greater happiness,
better stress management, and even higher achievement in academics. In
mindfulness, sustaining concentration is important.
15 Exercises to Help Kids Improve Their Focus
Concentration is one of the essential skills that a child
should be developing right from early years but must keep improving. Yet, it is
difficult for parents to teach this because of various distractions in a
stimulating environment.
Following the 15 tips to enhance your child's ability to
focus and concentrate:
How to Improve Your Child's Concentration
- Assess Your Child's Attention Span
A child's attention span is supposed to be two to three
times their age. So, for example, a five-year-old can likely only concentrate
for about 15 minutes. To maximize the time they can pay attention make sure
they have eaten and slept well and are free from all distractions. Finding the
optimal part of the day for focused activities can also be key.
- Introduce One Lesson at a Time
Though multitasking is a needed skill for adults, children
aren't quite ready yet for juggling more than one thing at a time. Give them a
single goal at a time; if they are learning the alphabet, don't try to teach
them numbers until later. You can plan an activity that lets lessons overlap,
like painting and singing the related nursery rhyme.
- Time Your Activities
Children are able to concentrate more easily when they know
how long they are expected to focus. If an activity is timed, they will begin
to develop an awareness of how much more time they have to pay attention before
being able to take a break, and you can also gradually extend the periods of
time they spend working on these types of activities while charting the
changes.
- Schedule Breaks
Allow your child to take breaks often between activities to
give them more time to revitalize their energy. Breaks loosen the mood and
clear the functioning of the brain. Studies have indicated that during breaks,
the brain continues to process memories and information for constructive
internal reflection.
- Use Chunking
Chunking is the breaking down information into little, more
digestible chunks to make it easier to recall. For your child, you can chunk information
into lessons so that they would remember well what they learn. The approach
also allows taking more breaks, further reinforces the positive side of
internal reflections.
- Avoid Distractions
Curious children have a distinct advantage in development,
but it can also be a large obstacle to learning. Eliminate as many distractions
from your child's view as you can so they can focus on the task at hand.
- Funnel Extra Energy
Sometimes, even when physical distractions are removed, children simply have extra energy that makes them want to do something else. Let them get this energy out before beginning lessons; this may involve playing or time with a pet.
- Put Distractions to Work
If your child continues to get distracted and you've tried
ways to direct that energy positively, then use the distraction as a teaching
moment. For example, if your child is learning their alphabet and they see a
bird outside the window, then take that moment to teach them that
"bird" starts with B.
- Limit Screen Time
Excessive gadget use significantly impacts the capacity of a
child to concentrate. Advise the use of screens based on age; no screen for
those below two years other than on special occasions, the age between two to
five years with one hour maximum only if parents are around to supervise, and
limit those five to seventeen years to two hours every day only without school
work.
- Nourish Relationships
Spend quality time with your children, like reading stories
or doing puzzles. It helps not only in improving concentration but also in
bringing the parent and child closer.
- Find Out What Your Child Is Interested In
Take notice of what keeps your child's interest. If he or
she likes to read, then get him or her books or comics on his or her topics of
interest. Merging curiosity and learning is a great way to focus on improving
concentration.
- Be Consistent
Whenever possible, do lessons at the same time every day. By
having a routine, such as reading together at 10:00 a.m. every day, kids will
start associating that time of day with learning in a fun way.
- Understand Their Learning Style
Understand and know what your child is; this can be a
visual, an auditory, or a kinesthetic learner. This will come easy in
understanding it by how they use and absorb information. The kids who are
kinesthetic learners need to have some kind of physical activity added into
their lessons for better comprehension.
- Simplify Lessons
If your child doesn't understand something in a lesson,
reduce the concept into very simple words and rephrase the text in a manner he
would understand, adding metaphors and examples he would be familiar with -
linking the letters, for example to characters of his favorite shows.
- Play Concentration Games
Incorporate games into the exercise routine; fun games like chess, scrabble, crossword puzzles, musical chairs, and Red Light, Green Light will offer fun interaction while building concentration simultaneously.
Conclusion
Of all skills, this may be one of the most difficult to
invoke voluntarily, even amongst much more self-consciously aware adults. For
children to attain it can be especially hard. This said, concentration is just
so important that the following tips can help parents support their child in
developing this skill. It seldom comes innately or as a given trait along with
communication, imagination, confidence, creativity or teamwork.