You know what I find funny a celebrity that I'm highly doubtful rebecca was in contact or met , is absolutely tragic and has shaken her up ( is she for real ) but when a young boy went missing from Aberdeen board a bus and was last seen near banchory did she care ... nope dont even think she shared the missing poster ( I'm not 100% sure but I cant recall it) there was no help from her at all .
Did CF suicide 'shake' me ? No. I was saddened that someone felt that this was the only way they could see an end to their internal pain, very much as I was saddened by Robin Williams suicide following his diagnosis of Lewy Body Disease.
I was much more shaken and did shed tears over the death of Liam Smith the teenager you mentioned above. He was only 16 and nearly everyone I know in this area had at some point shared his missing poster on facebook. The few weeks after he went missing every dog walk we went on, every time we drove round the Crathes / Banchory / Strachan area you looked for some signs that someone could be camped out etc.
Without giving away my sons identity, one of his team mates committed suicide on their 18th birthday, just weeks before they were all due to travel to Australia & New Zealand to compete and my son was with them just the day before they took their own life. This persons friends including my son all were questioning themselves as to whether there was something they could have done to prevent it happening. Very complex issues unravelled after their death and actually no one was unkind to this person, there were injury related issues / sports funding issues / a high achiever who put incredible pressure on themselves to succeed etc. Far far more complex than 'being kind'
What does shake me is the increasing number of young people who take their own lives, those that go to school with our children, those whose families we know through community or business.
My apologies for the horrendously long article attached which was posted yesterday on my facebook page by a friend who is a Senior CAMHS Nurse. This is what shakes me. This is what should shake both Meldrums, one day soon the three girls will be teenagers. Her girls may grow up to be shaken to the core by the suicide of a friend , a class mate , a young work colleague. 1 in five children have mental heath problems - they cannot smugly assume that their children will not be in any of these statistics. Instead of being shaken by the death of a celebrity who for some bizarre reason Rebecca feels she has some connection with and the sanctimonious spewing of 'Be Kind' they both need to look closer to home and realise the content they have created and their online behaviour has the potential to become a mental health monster for their three girls.
A SILENT TRAGEDY
There is a silent tragedy that is unfolding today in our homes, and concerns our most precious jewels: our children. Our children are in a devastating emotional state! In the last 15 years, researchers have given us increasingly alarming statistics on a sharp and steady increase in childhood mental illness that is now reaching epidemic proportions:
Statistics do not lie:
• 1 in 5 children have mental health problems
• A 43% increase in ADHD has been noted
• A 37% increase in adolescent depression has been noted
• There has been a 200% increase in the suicide rate in children aged 10 to 14
What is happening and what are we doing wrong?
Today's children are being over-stimulated and over-gifted with material objects, but they are deprived of the fundamentals of a healthy childhood, such as:
• Emotionally available parents
• Clearly defined limits
• Responsibilities
• Balanced nutrition and adequate sleep
• Movement in general but especially OUTDOORS
• Creative play, social interaction, unstructured game opportunities and boredom spaces
Instead, in recent years, children have been filled with:
• Digitally distracted parents
• Indulgent and permissive parents who let children "rule the world" and whoever sets the rules
• A sense of right, of deserving everything without earning it or being responsible for obtaining it
• Inadequate sleep and unbalanced nutrition
• A sedentary lifestyle
• Endless stimulation, technological nannies, instant gratification and absence of boring moments
What to do?
If we want our children to be happy and healthy individuals, we have to wake up and get back to basics. It is still possible! Many families see immediate improvements after weeks of implementing the following recommendations:
• Set limits and remember that you are the captain of the ship. Your children will feel more confident knowing that you have control of the helm.
• Offer children a balanced lifestyle full of what children NEED, not just what they WANT. Don't be afraid to say "no" to your children if what they want is not what they need.
• Provide nutritious food and limit junk food.
• Spend at least one hour a day outdoors doing activities such as: cycling, walking, fishing, bird / insect watching
• Enjoy a daily family dinner without smartphones or distracting technology.
• Play board games as a family or if children are very small for board games, get carried away by their interests and allow them to rule in the game
• Involve your children in some homework or household chores according to their age (folding clothes, ordering toys, hanging clothes, unpacking food, setting the table, feeding the dog etc.)
• Implement a consistent sleep routine to ensure your child gets enough sleep. The schedules will be even more important for school-age children.
• Teach responsibility and independence. Do not overprotect them against all frustration or mistakes. Misunderstanding will help them build resilience and learn to overcome life's challenges,
• Do not carry your children's backpack, do not carry their backpacks, do not carry the homework they forgot, do not peel bananas or peel oranges if they can do it on their own (4-5 years). Instead of giving them the fish, teach them to fish.
• Teach them to wait and delay gratification.
• Provide opportunities for "boredom", since boredom is the moment when creativity awakens. Do not feel responsible for always keeping children entertained.
• Do not use technology as a cure for boredom, nor offer it at the first second of inactivity.
• Avoid using technology during meals, in cars, restaurants, shopping centers. Use these moments as opportunities to socialize by training the brains to know how to work when they are in mode: "boredom"
• Help them create a "bottle of boredom" with activity ideas for when they are bored.
• Be emotionally available to connect with children and teach them self-regulation and social skills:
• Turn off the phones at night when children have to go to bed to avoid digital distraction.
• Become a regulator or emotional trainer for your children. Teach them to recognize and manage their own frustrations and anger.
• Teach them to greet, to take turns, to share without running out of anything, to say thank you and please, to acknowledge the error and apologize (do not force them), be a model of all those values you instill.
• Connect emotionally - smile, hug, kiss, tickle, read, dance, jump, play or crawl with them.
Article written by — Victoria Prooday