Mental Health – their struggle is real

Last week brought us World Mental Health Day and with it a welcome opportunity to unite in challenging, supporting and celebrating so many issues surrounding this important area. The theme for 2022 was, ‘make mental health & well-being for all a global priority’ and we are whole-heartedly here for that. Not least because ‘all’ includes children. We passionately advocate for all the children in our care and know that many suffer with mental health conditions. We also know how difficult it can be for young people to access the help they need.

When it comes to the mental health of our children, their struggle is real, but there can be hope.

The statistics surrounding children’s mental health are shocking. Figures from NHS Digital reveal one in six children aged 5-16 years old have a probable mental health problem and currently a record number of over 400,000 are being treated every month. And those are just the cases which access support. It’s clear that there is a mental health crisis hitting children today and we need to open our eyes to it more than ever.

For some young people, their conditions will pass with time, but for others they last a lifetime. Half of adult mental health problems are established by the time children hit 14 years, after all. And foster children are even more at risk. The BMJ suggests that experiencing childhood trauma as much as doubles the risk of developing a mental health condition. The link between cared-for children, trauma and mental health is tangible.

Common conditions foster children face include depression, anxiety disorders, PTSD, eating disorders, social phobias and reactive attachment disorder. None of these conditions are the fault of the fostered child or (except in a few sad cases) the fault of their foster carer. No blame needs to be apportioned, just signs spotted and support given. Which is where that hope we mentioned earlier comes in.

In exactly the same way physical health problems have symptoms, so do mental health conditions. They’re a bit more subtle sometimes though. Clearly each condition will have its own signs, but general things to look out for in a child include: prolonged or regular periods of feeling angry, anxious or low, ongoing difficulty with sleeping, avoiding social situations, changes in eating habits, not wanting to do things they usually enjoy, self-harm and neglect. If you’re at all concerned about a child in your care, contact their GP and social worker, who will help you take things forward. MindEd for Families is a great resource if you need more information.

Undoubtedly mental health resources are stretched at the moment, but they are available and they are accessible. With you and us advocating for them, our foster children can get the help and support they need to thrive.

On the big stage, the Children’s Commissioner for England has this year published six ambitions for early mental health support for children. In the long term, it seems there is hope too. For more present-day hope, in our next blog we’ll be looking at ways we can help foster children stay mentally healthy, condition or not.

As the world considers making mental health & well-being for all a priority, at Footprints we know the struggle for so many children is real. But together we can give them hope.