Blog post #3

Topic question: how does play affect a child’s mental health?

This big topic question will have implications in on a global level because we need to focus on the future generation for the future well-being of our world by focusing on children. Furthermore, by informing the community on mental health, we will be able to decrease the global percentage of depression, anxiety, and suicide. Mental health affects all ages, so everyone will be able to profit from this project. Finally, a stable mental health helps us with adversities like death of a loved one, school environment and physical health. I hope to positively affect our community by researching about this inquiry project.

Sub question: Why is mental health important?

I would like to engage the audience on the importance of mental health first to make them more interested in this topic. I need to figure out what a healthy child’s mental health means to figure out how it will be affected by a child’s form of play. In this subtopic, I will explain how being upset does not mean we have an unhealthy mental health. Furthermore, I will talk about healthy amount of stress and unhealthy amount of stress. Finally, I will talk about how we can prevent mental health problems. This is to show the audience how vital mental health is in our daily lives.

Mental health is the wellness of how we think, regulate our emotions and how we behave (1). A mental disorder is when the process of our thoughts, behaviours and feelings disrupts our ability to function in our daily lives (1). For example, in relationships, productivity, performance in school and work, intelligence of retaining information, participation, etc (1). Self-care is very important to maintain a healthy mental health (1). Self-care is a designated time to focus on our happiness (2). If we practice self-care daily, we will be able to manage stress, lower our chance of sickness, and increase our overall energy level (2). Some examples of self-care is to get regular exercise (3). For example, you can take a walk in Mundy Park to distract ourselves from school stress (4). Furthermore, we can eat regularly eat a healthy meal (4). For example, we can limit our caffeine and eat a variety of vegetables (4).

Another way to elevate our mental health is to get enough sleep every day (5). An example, we can reduce using our screens before bed, so we are more tempted to sleep faster (5). Furthermore, we can talk frequently with our family and friends (5). They can provide us with advice and emotional support whenever we need it (6). Moreover, it can be staying organized with our priorities (6). For example, instead of stressing over projects that are due in a month, we can focus on an upcoming exam (6).

Some warning signs that we have mental health problems are that we feel hopeless and depressed (7). Furthermore, it is when we have frequent mood swings. Being mad is a normal emotion, but it becomes an issue if we keep on switching between mad and happy (7). Another warning sign is that we are so stressed it affects our sleep schedule and our eating schedule. Having a stress level where we are motivated to do better is great (8). However, if we are so stressed that we cannot commit to our schedules like school, sports, and hangouts it may become an issue (8). If we feel like our mental health is low, it is important to reach out to an important adult in our life like our teachers, parents, grandparents, etc (8).

I plan on researching why is childhood development important for my next inquiry post. This will answer my topic question (how child’s play affects a child’s mental health) because child’s play is a part of childhood development. I will research about this topic because the audience may not realize the importance of child development. Child development is one of the most crucial development in our life that shapes our personalities, values and opinions. Child development is where we learn our cognition skills, social interaction, emotional regulation, speech and language, physical skills and sensory awareness. Child development is the guideline of future milestones like adolescence, adulthood and senior years. Therefore, our community needs to be more aware on how to create a beneficial childhood environment.

ALL SOURCES ARE PEER-REVIEWED:

1) Mental health: What’s normal, what’s not. (n.d.). Mayo Clinic. Retrieved December 11, 2023, from https://www.mayoclinic.org/healthy-lifestyle/adult-health/in-depth/mental-health/art-20044098

2) What is mental health? (2023, February 2). https://www.samhsa.gov/mental-health

3) Mental Illness: Costs and Consequences. (2022). In Gale Canada Online Collection. Gale. https://link-gale-com.bc.idm.oclc.org/apps/doc/EJ2181600113/CIC?u=43dcbs&sid=bookmark-CIC&xid=7b38cd51

4) CBC/Radio-Canada 2014-2023. (n.d.). Kn explains: Mental health. Retrieved December 11, 2023, from https://curio.ca/en/catalog/316180b6-de3a-44d3-bc4f-916b42d188d3

5) Older adult community mental health—Tri-cites. (n.d.). Retrieved December 11, 2023, from https://www.fraserhealth.ca/Service-Directory/Service-At-Location/E/D/older-adult-community-mental-health—tri-cites

6) Login—KnowBC – the leading source of BC information. (n.d.). Retrieved December 11, 2023, from https://www.knowbc.com/books/Encyclopedia-of-BC/M/Mental-Health-Policy

7) Canada, N. F. B. of. (n.d.). Out of mind, out of sight. Retrieved December 11, 2023, from https://www.nfb.ca/film/out_of_mind_out_of_sight/embed/player/

8) Merkel, B. (2023). Health. In World Book Advanced.
https://www-worldbookonline-com.bc.idm.oclc.org/advanced/article?id=ar249580

Thank you for reading!