To ask a genuine question about child mental health?

[poldarkssecretlover]

This is an issue that has touched our family recently and something we are struggling to understand and I was just interested in the views of other parents as to whether you think children's mental health is generally worse now than it was when you were young or whether we're just more aware of these issues now?

My daughter has mental health issues yet on the face of it has a much "better" childhood than I did - she has nice trips and holidays, better clothes and toys, loving friends and family. So we have been asking ourselves whether it's something in her character or whether her life is somehow affecting her mental heath - are schools more pressurised nowadays? Do we give her too much - would she be happier with a simpler life? I came from a very poor home with lots of arguing and we didn't get holidays or many toys and at times I wasn't that happy but I don't remember having the levels of anxiety my daughter has. I wonder if other parents feel the same.

Would be really interested in people's honest views on this subject- I won't judge anyone's viewpoint, I'm just looking for a better understanding of this. Thanks!

SM has definitely created new areas of mh issues, and also the lack of freedom and independence that children have now due to safety concerns about going out and about etc. Isolation, really. Aside from these two factors, I think mh issues just get more attention now than they used to, and that's broadly a good thing. Getting validation for struggles and proper help at a young age is a brilliant thing, and must improve outcomes for those kids. I've seen it with my own adult children. They veer off in weird directions in high school and you think it's a disaster, but if you face those issues squarely, early, with lots of patience and hand holding, and prompt medical help, they just flourish in their twenties, and don't hit the roadblocks that lots of other youngsters hit, because they've developed that knowledge of themselves, and emotional intelligence, early. So they're set to know how to deal with mh blips. The ones who are left to 'grow out' of anxiety or whatever, commonly seem to continue to struggle and develop new issues further down the line.