Hi everyone - we've got some exciting news!

We are so grateful to have been chosen by Melissa to take forward this amazing Facebook Group to support parents of young people who self-harm.

We plan to be diving into our members' posts to give support and guidance FAR more often, running weekly live Q&As where you can ask for specific advice for your child and LOADS LOADS more.

Watch this space...and remember that if you're currently in a very dark place, hang in there, lean on the rest of us here and know that things can get better.

Sending love to our community and looking forward to supporting you through this chapter.

If you’re a parent or carer in need of support, you can become part of our community by joining our free Facebook Group 'Self Harm - Parents': https://www.facebook.com/groups/339257352865468/

For more support and practical advice for you as parents while you support your child or teen, CLICK HERE for the Horizon Plan, our free...

If you’re a parent worried that your child’s fears or phobias are negatively impacting their day-to-day mental wellbeing and you want to do something about it, this article is for you. 

Children often face fears and phobias, which can range from common anxieties such as animals, the dark, and heights to more specific fears like clowns, blood, or being sick. In fact, very few of us make it through childhood without any fears. For example, I used to drag my Mum by the hand across the street as soon as I spotted a big dog coming towards us.

But if these kinds of fears are starting to disrupt your child’s sleep, give them extreme nightmares, or cause them daily and debilitating distress, then they could be seriously impacting their mental health. Any fright that is persistent, intense, and causing your child great unhappiness is, of course, something that you want to help them cope with.

In this article, we’ll talk through some ways that...

During this cost of living crisis, we’re all juggling caring for our families with skyrocketing bills. But, even when the budget’s tight, your children’s wellbeing is still priority number one. 

So, if you suspect that your child is struggling with their mental or emotional health, but pricey private therapy sessions are out of reach, what are you supposed to do? 

Relying on overburdened free mental healthcare services like the NHS’s CAHMs (Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services) can feel disappointing given the agonisingly long waiting lists. Fear not, though; there are ways you can support your child’s mental well-being yourself without breaking the bank.

In this article, we’ll explore 10 affordable ways you can nurture your child’s well-being even during these financially challenging times.

#1: Look out for free resources

If only we had unlimited funds, we’d all have a squad of psychologists and private...

This month, the Youth Mental Health Foundation team have been delivering assemblies and workshops to primary schools in Devon.

Thanks to our funders, West Devon Borough Council, Teignbridge District Council, and North Yard Community Trust, we have been visiting local schools to build mental health resilience and self-esteem.

Our school assemblies and workshops have been designed, developed and delivered by Jade Sutton, aged 19, who has lived experience of struggling with, and recovering from, significant mental health challenges. 

Earlier this month, Jade was interviewed on BBC Radio about winning the BBC 'Make A Difference Awards' for her work. You can listen to the interview by CLICKING HERE.

To date, Jade has spoken to over 35,000 young people with her powerful messages to:

• Improve mental health resilience and self-esteem in young people
• Destigmatise mental health, making it easier for young people to ask for help
• Educate young people to accept, respect and...

Zoom Parents Support Programme: Torbay

The programme will support 30 young people in Torbay struggling with mental health, but not qualifying for CAMHs support, by equipping their parents/carers to support their mental and emotional health and healing. 

From lived experience, we have seen the importance of the parent/carer role in a young person's mental health recovery. This early intervention program will address early onset mental health problems in young people, resolving the problems or preventing their escalation within the family unit.

Our parenting programme provides:

 1) Psychoeducation and skills training: guiding parents/carers to support the recovery of a young person suffering with their mental health using our evidence-based clinical intervention.

2) Parental self-care: teaching parents how to care for their own mental and emotional health to best support their child.

3) Navigating statutory support: Coaching parents/carers on how to access the support...

Is your child struggling with their mental health? Are you looking to support your child, but need help and guidance?

Being the parent of a child who is experiencing a mental health crisis is devastating and complex. You are most likely in one of the most painful and difficult periods of your life.

We know how you feel, and want to assure you that you're not alone.

You'll desperately want to do EVERYTHING possible to support your child through this crisis, but there's a strong chance that you are feeling:

• UNPREPARED - with no relevant experience or training
• FROZEN - unsure how to move forward
• DISCONNECTED - from your child who may be unwilling to accept help 
• ANGRY - at how teachers and schools etc have let your child down 
• GUILTY - wondering if you could have prevented this
• FEARFUL - of how this situation could escalate

Most likely, you'll have reached out to your doctor, CAMHS or a healthcare professional to support your child's recovery. You want to help...

Over the last year, we have delivered mental health support to SEN Schools across Devon thanks to the generous support of Northbrook Community Trust. 

Our ‘What’s Your Genius’ workshop is a fun, lively and interactive 2.5-hour session, where young people learn their unique thinking and learning styles (Genius types), gain confidence in their natural strengths, whilst at the same time learning to avoid comparing themselves with others. 

The broader understanding and acceptance of all genius types enables participants to better understand and collaborate with others through teamwork. 

The workshop stimulates participants to explore what they enjoy in life (their passions) and act in service to others to make this world a better place, to find happiness and realise their potential.

By shining a positive light on a young person’s unique strengths and abilities, the workshops aim to increase awareness, acceptance and understanding of neurodiversity,...

Trigger warning: This article discusses eating disorders and mental health in relation to young people. If you are affected by anything in this post, please refer to our free resources listed at the end of this article.

According to a 2023 study, there has been a large rise in eating disorder diagnoses and self-harm episodes amongst teenage girls in the UK in the years since the COVID-19 pandemic.

Dr Pearl Mok from The University of Manchester explains that “the reasons for the increase in eating disorder diagnoses and self-harm episodes amongst teenage girls during the pandemic are likely to be complex and could be due to a mixture of issues such as social isolation, anxiety resulting from changing routines, disruption in education, unhealthy social media influences, and increased clinical awareness.”

As a parent, it can be worrying to think that you may have missed the signs of an eating disorder. It is common for parents not to recognise the signs, especially...

Does this picture illustrate how you feel sometimes? 

When your child is struggling with mental health and self-harm, it can feel overwhelming.

There’s a good chance that your head is full of unanswered questions, anxieties, worries, and ideas about things that you could do that might help your child. The problem is, when your head is swimming with questions and ideas, it’s like trying to juggle twenty balls at the same time.

Not only is this exhausting but it often leaves you frozen, not knowing what to do first.

We're here to support you.

We have helped hundreds of parents and carers to better support a young person struggling with mental health through our free online course 'The Horizon Plan'.

To join our free online course today, follow the link: https://www.youthmentalhealthfoundation.org/onlinecourse

Connecting with a community of like-minded parents in the same situation can allow you to feel less alone. We have an online community of parents/carers who are...

We want to say a huge thank you to the ongoing support of West Devon Borough Council and Councillor Tony Leech. Thanks to their funding, we have been able to deliver key mental health and well-being support to young people in West Devon at no cost to schools.

Our hugely successful assemblies and workshops have been designed, developed and delivered by Jade Sutton, aged 19, who has lived experience of struggling with, and recovering from, significant mental health challenges. To date, Jade has spoken to over 35,000 young people with her powerful messages to destigmatize mental health, build self-esteem and mental health resilience.

Thanks to West Devon Borough Council, we have delivered our assemblies and workshops to six more primary schools in West Devon since October, with several more schools booked for 2024.

Our assemblies and workshops aim to:

• Improve mental health resilience and self-esteem in young people
• Destigmatise mental health, making it easier for young...