This week is all about Children’s Mental Health.
As most of you know this business was set up shortly after the arrival of Elizabeth. The set-up of the business did bring some mental worries with lots of anxiety. Mostly to myself with giving up my career as a teacher, but if you do know me, I worry about everything and anything
The inside story to our Mental Health
Elizabeth and I have a very strong bond, that many people, family, friends and professionals have commented. She has suffered with separation anxiety, always had problems with Sleep. While lots of praise is given to Elizabeth, she is a worrier, she gets that from me. Having Dyslexia doesn’t help either, at the age of seven she is already aware that she is having to work twice as hard as some of her peers just to keep up. While in other areas she is so talented. The problem is she focuses on the things that she needs to improve on all the time.
The first lockdown brought some new challenges like many, for us it brought more anxiety. One very clear image as a Mum that will stay with me and haunt me is when a delivery arrived at the house. When I went back into the house to find Elizabeth, I found her on her bed hugging a school picture, crying and saying I will see you all again repeatedly. Elizabeth also turned to biting her nails more frequently which then because she ran out of nail, she turned to her picking the skin off her fingers.
Like most Mum’s when you see your child hurt so much, you want to wrap them up in cotton wool and tell them it’s all going to be okay, take their worries away. However, with this whole covid situation the situation has and continues to constantly been changing and it’s out of our control. Having two parents who are both self-employed it has been hard prioritising which tasks to achieve first. While often our own metal health has suffered.
Third lockdown announcements sent shivers down my back as I heard the announcement schools where closing. Elizabeth’s school have been amazing and so supportive. But it’s not the same as seeing the teachers in person each day or your school friends. I saw flash images again of her clinging on to her school photo. While many say you must be okay, you only have one child and you were a teacher.
It’s very different being a teacher to other children than your own. The struggles your own child face’s you feel them in your heart. When you’re a teacher of a class you have control of them, whereas at home you are everything. Also, another teacher knows the plans, where I can often see where the teacher is going, but may not present it in the same manner. When your child is also dyslexic and the lessons are all online and the teacher wants them to be independent that throws up a lot more worries. However, we are now into week five putting all the worries aside to improve our metal health during this winter period, we have mystery scheduled walks daily during Elizabeth’s lunch time break.
Elizabeth’s sleep is something we still work on continuously, and we have the weighted blankets, the teddy, the bubble lamp, a new decorated room of a beach scene to make it calming. We have the same routine, but we have introduced a dairy, that adults are not allowed to read! Elizabeth can fill in the diary specifically asking certain questions about her achievements for the day and how she is feeling. We have been baking more, not good for the waste line but it’s something Elizabeth enjoys. It’s a relaxing creative method, just like when we go on our walks or she has a bath, she is able to express and talk about her thoughts and feelings.
While it is children’s mental health week please look after yourselves because if you do then we can look after our little ones that we so much love. In these challenging times prioritise, remember the importance of being well, being creative in your own way and share, caring and talking are all important.
