Christmas mental health tips for children

Children, like adults, share the same 12 physical and emotional needs – which in spite of all the fun of Christmas – can lead to a build-up of stress and anger if they are not met, often resulting in tears and tantrums.

As children across the county break up from school for the festive break, our Children, Family and Young People’s (CFYP) team have unveiled their top 5 tips to help children meet their emotional needs this Christmas.

Top tips for different needs

• Sleep

Sleep is very important to both physical and mental health. It is common for bedtimes to change over the Christmas period, but it’s important to keep this as close to normal as possible and ensure children receive a healthy amount so they feel refreshed and ready for the day ahead.

• Movement and Food & Drink

Most families will indulge in some sweet treats over Christmas, whether that’s chocolates in the advent calendar or a selection box to enjoy in front of the TV. Maintaining a healthy diet is important for the brain, but it’s also crucial to ensure children have opportunities to meet their need for Movement to burn off that added energy. This could include going out for walks, playing in the park or even decorating the tree or dinner table.

• Attention and Emotional Connection

It can be difficult to give children the same amount of Attention and Emotional Connection they may otherwise enjoy outside of all the big family events. Spending time with them watching a Christmas film, baking gingerbread or playing a board game are great ways to meet both.

• Privacy

As well as spending quality time together, parents should also consider that children still need their private time too. While it’s great to get the family together, don’t stop your children from having a chance to spend some time alone enjoying their presents, reading a book or simply taking a quiet time away from the festivities.

• Control and Security

Similarly to privacy, it’s important that children feel they have control over the situations they are in. Talk to your children about what to expect from any big events, whether that’s a long trip to see distant families, or even visiting Father Christmas. Above all, be accepting if they’d rather not spend lots of time downstairs or hug and kiss someone they don’t know as well as you. This helps meet their need for Security and prevents them from feeling overwhelmed.

Louise Taylor-Harris, our CFYP Service Manager, said: “While Christmas is a time for fun and positivity, it’s still as important as ever to take care of our emotional needs, especially in children.

“A big part of that comes to the changes to their normal routine and a feeling of not knowing what to expect during what is often a packed-out couple of weeks.

“Adding in lots of sweet treats throughout the holidays, long periods of time with extended members of the family they might not know, different bedtimes and less time to spend alone or one-on-one with their parents can have a real effect on their emotional wellbeing.”

Louise added: “It’s important to note that these tips aren’t exclusive to children, either.

“Any parent knows how hard it can be to focus on themselves over Christmas with so many things to do but taking the time out to focus on your physical and emotional needs is so important.

“We all want to have a fun, memorable Christmas without any tears – and making that a reality starts with meeting our needs.”