Using Storytelling To Address Mental Health Topics

Introduction

Parents are always worried about their children in various aspects, but sometimes, aside from health and nutrition, parents forget to put special emphasis on mental health needs. Mental health needs can be very subtle, and directive, which can help children with small improvements and childhood habits to develop a greater personality; navigating their future lives with ease.

Mental health stability doesn't mean parents must be constantly available for their children when they are crying or struggling through tough times. Mental health stability is also the teaching of different values and habits to improve children's lives with positivity and happiness, so that they become self-reliant and resilient enough to meet the challenges life will inevitably throw at them.

Get to know the full concept of mental health, why it is essential for children, and the benefits of storytelling to inculcate mental health topics.

Mental Health: The Concept

Mental health is just as necessary as physical health. Mental health, in simple terms, can be understood as the overall development of the mind and behavioral patterns, including the child's emotional needs. Emotion management, awareness, and intelligence are important aspects of mental health. Mental health is a vast umbrella which can be essential for children as they grow up perceiving different values, following through various directions, and landing upon the correct decisions. A strong mental health is one of the mandatory needs to navigate and a bright future. Children who are struggling with mental health are always under confidence and secure and tend to overthink various decisions affecting their lives.

What Is Storytelling?

Storytelling is the art of recitation where the parent or someone engages the children in describing a tale or a piece of the incident known as a story. The art of engaging in communication, which describes a certain incident or a piece of tale that paints a picture in front of the eyes of children while they are listening, can be known as storytelling.

Storytelling can also have various elements like props, music, role-playing, and others to make the activity more fun. For many children, storytelling is a bedtime ritual, but it can also be used as a good technique to teach morals to children, facilitating good mental health awareness.

Benefits Of Storytelling On Mental Health

There are various benefits of storytelling that concern the mental health of children:

• Storytelling can be counted as the positive reinforcement of different values and morals in children without hurting their feelings or forcing them to do something. Without any force or pressure, children will have a deeper impression, willingly making a good impact on their personalities.
• Children learning about different values and morals manually or as the parent nags at them can be futile because children focus on it less. Engaging children in interesting activities like storytelling while inculcating moral and mental health topics such as boundaries, self-care, and love will help them get a good example out of the characters and the story. Still, it can also help them realize much more.
• Children engaging in storytelling sessions can also learn about complex mental health topics in an easy manner with the help of stories selected by parents to inculcate various morals and teachings.

Using Storytelling To Address Mental Health Topics

Get to know about various techniques to use storytelling to address mental health topics:

Boundaries

Help your children understand the boundaries with the help of storytelling, comparing each character and how they feel to one another as a simple activity. Pick out the story where emotional feelings and perspectives are highlighted more.

Self-Love And Care

Pick out stories which involve self-care and nurture so that children can learn how self-care and nourishment are necessary to progress in the world without any mental burdens. Many story books involve princesses and characters who do good to society as an act of self-love with a will to do something good for themselves.

Coping Mechanism

There are different story books which can also provide help and awareness to children during struggling mental health situations. Different storybooks help the children understand healthy coping mechanisms, such as counting back to 100 or self-assurance with various affirmations. The child relates to the story; gaining motivation and strength.

Conclusion

Now that parents have learnt about the benefits of Mental Health and how it is necessary, they understand the concept more deeply. Teach various habits and values through different mental health activities, including storytelling. Parents can also take the laboratory to get creative with various storytelling sessions, adding extra elements to ensure children learn the values and morals easily. Help your child be the best version of themselves without any problems and mental health hindrances.