STUDENT WELLBEING

Hello friends,
We know that coming out of two years of Covid isolations and lockdowns, the mental health of our adolescents remains vulnerable. Dr Michael Carr Greg, one of Australia’s best known adolescent psychologists, has the following advice on supporting the mental health of young people.

• Regular exercise.
  Exercise is also considered a key ingredient for good mental health. Young people should aim to spend some time each day outside of the house and getting some physical activity. Oxygenation of the brain is really important for mental health and for improved concentration and clear thinking.
• Digital quarantine.
  Make sure students remove their phones while they study and never let young people keep their phones by their bed at night. Many young people are addicted to their phones and good sleep is one of the most important factors for good mental health and reduced anxiety. We know how hard it is for young people to ignore a notification that pings on their phone…. Even at 1am.
• Practice gratitude and kindness.
  Remind our families of the things we should be grateful for and also encourage them to reach out to others with a sense of kindness to check how others are going. Encourage a good deed each day.
• Be organized.
  Being organised gives the brain a sense of being in control. Encourage your child to plan what they want to achieve each school day, to use their planner, regularly check compass but then make lists and tick items off. There is great power in ticking items off a list.
• Encourage them to focus on what they can control.
  Focus on the things they can control and remind them that mental energy worrying about things they have no control over only serves to create more anxiety and has zero impact upon that thing. Focus energy on what they can control.

As I say to students daily, we do care about every one of our students and their wellbeing. Your child’s mental health and wellbeing  is our priority and we want to continue to provide quality welfare support to our students. If you have any concerns at all about your child then please contact your child’s coordinator or one of the wellbeing team below. Gill, Rebecca and I are available to parents via phone or email. Your child can also contact us directly by knocking on the door of our office. Siobhan O ‘Halloran and Siobhan Martin are available to do individual counseling with students and a referral to them can be made by contacting myself so we can discuss if the referral to them the is right option for your child. We are here to support you.

Regards,

John Nichol
Well-Being Leader