Early childhood mental health refers to the ability of children to experience, control, and express their emotions; form close and secure relationships; and learn while exploring their environment. These abilities are fostered and grow within the context of a positive caregiving environment. Children’s communities also play a large role in their mental health.
The impact of poor mental health on a person’s life is intensified when the problems begin in early childhood. In fact, many childhood mental health issues persist into adolescence and adulthood.
What is early childhood mental health?
Early childhood mental health refers to the ability of children to experience, control, and express their emotions; form close and secure relationships; and learn while exploring their environment. These abilities are fostered and grow within the context of a positive caregiving environment. Children’s communities also play a large role in their mental health.
Why is it Important?
Our mental and physical health is interconnected in so many ways. Young children need to develop skills that will help them be mentally and physically healthy throughout their lives. Developing these skills can help to prevent chronic physical illnesses and behavioural, learning, and mental health problems later in life. These skills will also help children adapt to transitions and stress in their lives, including school.
We can all help children develop the skills that they need for healthy development in early childhood. These skills include:
Forming secure attachments with their caregivers
Developing a sense of curiosity
Exploring their environment
Making sense of and being able to control their emotions
Controlling their impulses
Understanding other people’s emotions, facial expression and body language
Developing social skills
Learning to communicate with others
Feeling safe in their homes
Coping with changes and new environments
Understanding and accepting differences among people
Developing resilience (skills to cope with change and stress)
Early Childhood Mental Health Concerns
15%
of children and youth in BC have a diagnosable mental illness. In Saskatchewan, we do not collect statistics on early intervention.
The impact of poor mental health on a child’s, youth’s and adult’s life is heightened when the problems begin in early childhood. In fact, many childhood mental health issues persist into adolescence and adulthood.
The following list of diagnosable clinical disorders that has been compiled using the DC:0-3R, Diagnostic Classification of Mental Health and Developmental Disorders of Infancy and Early Childhood, Revised Edition (2005). It is important to note that some clinicians choose to use the DSM-IV-TR Casebook and Treatment Guide for Child Mental Health (2009). The DC:0-3R is unique in that it views the child within his or her relationships and caregiving environment.
Mental health disorders in young children may be hard to detect as children may be unable to explain their emotional distress with words. More frequently, physical complaints and social behaviours are indicators that there may be a problem. The following behaviours in infants and young children that warrant concern and further intervention (Cohen, Onunaku, Clothier & Poppe, 2005) are:
Infants and Toddlers (birth to age 3)
Chronic feeding and sleeping difficulties
Inconsolable “fussiness” or irritability
Incessant crying with little ability to be consoled
Extremely upset when left with another adult
Inability to adapt to new situations
Easily startled or alarmed by routine events
Inability to establish relationships with other children or adults
Excessive hitting, biting, and pushing of other children and withdrawal behavior
Flat affect
Preschoolers (age 3 to 5)
Compulsive activities (e.g., head banging)
Wild, despairing tantrums
Little interest in social interaction; withdrawn
Repeated aggressive or impulsive behaviours
Difficulty playing with others
Little or no communication
Loss of earlier developmental achievements
Universal Assessment and Early Intervention
Universal assessment of all children and early intervention when problems are identified are the most effective ways to address early childhood mental health concerns.
Resilience
Resilience is the ability to cope with and recover from stressful situations, changes, or problems. Being resilient does not mean that a child will not feel stress, distress, sadness, and other emotions. It means that the child will use skills that they have developed in past situations to cope better with their current situation. It also means that the child will learn from the current situation and grow. Resiliency skills are always developing and changing.
The language of resilience is I CAN, I AM, I HAVE. For example, for a two year old this might translate to: I AM loveable, I AM safe, I CAN get comfort and support, I CAN tell mommy I am sad, I HAVE people who love me, and I HAVE a safe haven.
Why is resilience important?
Life is not stress free. It is guaranteed that each of us will experience stress, transitions, change, and problems throughout our life. When we are young, one of our caregivers’ roles is to help us cope with and protect us from the negative effects of stress and harm. It is in this protected environment that we are best able to learn how to cope with stress on our own.
What do protective and risk factors mean?
There are many factors during childhood that affect a child’s resiliency skills. An example of a protective factor is the development of a secure attachment with a caregiver. A risk factor is having no one to support you during a difficult time.
What can family members do to support early childhood mental health?
Provide unconditional love.
Provide a stable, safe, and consistent environment.
Express love safely, both physically and verbally.
Enforce rules in a calm, kind way, starting with children aged two or three.
Do not belittle, harm, or reject a child when you discipline.
Learn about early childhood development
Model behaviour that communicates confidence, self-esteem, courage, and optimism.
Praise children for accomplishments, being specific about what you are praising and why.
Encourage safe exploration and independence.
Acknowledge and label young children’s feelings.
Encourage children to recognize and express their own feelings and to recognize some feelings in others.
Give children comfort and encouragement in stressful situations.
Use holding, rocking, and a soothing voice to calm children.
Encourage children to learn self-soothing techniques.
Encourage children to use problem-solving skills and decision-making skills.
Help children begin to accept responsibility for their own behaviour and to understand consequences.
Allow children to develop close, safe relationships with other adults and children in their community.
Encourage and model flexibility.
What can communities do to support early childhood mental health?
Accept children and families into already established communities.
Show respect for and foster positive attitudes towards members of all genders within a community
Promote safe, equal access to recreation and other services in your geographical communities.
Encourage children and families to get involved with activities outside of the family.
Befriend and act as a safe mentor to young people in your community.
Praise children and make them feel valuable.
Offer all parents skill and confidence building information and programs.
Provide opportunities for daily physical activity for children of any age.
Support media that show healthy images and messages about children and families.
Provide information to communities and families about stress and trauma in young children.
Increase understanding in the community about attachment. Teach community members about caregiver behaviours that contribute to secure attachment relationships.
Provide practical support to families within the community.
Decrease violence in communities.
What can professionals do to support early childhood mental health?
Many of the above suggestions apply to service providers in their practices. In addition, service providers can can:
Provide a non-judgmental space for service users.
Encourage families to reach out for social support.
Encourage children to build on their strengths.
Advocate for changes that will create equal opportunities for your clients, e.g., adequate supports and social assistance rates.
Advocate for early childhood mental health to become part of strategic plans in mental health organizations.
Advocate for funding and staffing resources to be allocated specifically towards infant and early childhood mental health.
Advocate for system change in education, early childhood education, and mental health in recognizing the value of early childhood mental health.
Advocate for policy and system change that will create equal access to information, medical, and social services for all caregivers.
Advocate for the creation of quality daycare that promotes infant mental health.
Advocate for free and affordable access to recreational services.
Advocate for universal maternal depression screening and support.
Advocate for information and support for families in which parents have mental illnesses.
Receive training to work with children who have been traumatized.
Invest in the space and equipment that will be most appropriate for use with young children.
The Saskatchewan Early Childhood Mental Health Provincial Network provides an opportunity for professionals interested and/or working in the area of early childhood mental health to network, share information about current services, collaborate, and keep up-to-date with current research.
Early Childhood Mental Health Sign Up
Please fill out the form below so we can gather information on Saskatchewan programs, services, and educational opportunities in the area of early childhood mental health.
For more information about the Saskatchewan Early Childhood Mental Health Provincial Network call 306-651-4300 or email info@skprevention.ca
The Saskatchewan Prevention Institute hosts this network and provides opportunities for communication through the website, professional development opportunities, and information brochures.
We may request cookies to be set on your device. We use cookies to let us know when you visit our websites, how you interact with us, to enrich your user experience, and to customize your relationship with our website.
Click on the different category headings to find out more. You can also change some of your preferences. Note that blocking some types of cookies may impact your experience on our websites and the services we are able to offer.
Essential Website Cookies
These cookies are strictly necessary to provide you with services available through our website and to use some of its features.
Because these cookies are strictly necessary to deliver the website, refusing them will have impact how our site functions. You always can block or delete cookies by changing your browser settings and force blocking all cookies on this website. But this will always prompt you to accept/refuse cookies when revisiting our site.
We fully respect if you want to refuse cookies but to avoid asking you again and again kindly allow us to store a cookie for that. You are free to opt out any time or opt in for other cookies to get a better experience. If you refuse cookies we will remove all set cookies in our domain.
We provide you with a list of stored cookies on your computer in our domain so you can check what we stored. Due to security reasons we are not able to show or modify cookies from other domains. You can check these in your browser security settings.
Other external services
We also use different external services like Google Webfonts, Google Maps, and external Video providers. Since these providers may collect personal data like your IP address we allow you to block them here. Please be aware that this might heavily reduce the functionality and appearance of our site. Changes will take effect once you reload the page.
Building a Healthy Foundation: Nutrition for Families
The Supporting Parents Webinar Series focuses on topics to help parents and caregivers learn how to create environments that help children thrive. These webinars can be used as part of parenting groups or can be used by parents and caregivers independently. Interactive activities are used to share strategies and tips to enhance capacity to raise healthy, safe, and happy children. A recording of the webinar content and activity instructions will be available after each event.
This webinar will discuss a common parenting concern: feeding a family and raising children who are happy, confident eaters. It will guide participants through a framework for creating lasting healthy eating habits for families. Common concerns discussed include: nutrition during pregnancy, developing a positive relationship with food, picky eating in children, and creating a balanced pattern of eating. This webinar includes interactive activities to begin practicing skills to build a healthy nutrition foundation.
Pieces of the Puzzle: - An Introduction to the Webinar Series and the Saskatchewan Prevention Institute
Children’s well-being depends on safe, nurturing environments with support, love, and consistent care. There are many pieces of the puzzle that are needed to help children thrive. This webinar highlights new and existing resources from the Saskatchewan Prevention Institute for service providers to support parents and caregivers. It includes information on the Supporting Parents Webinar Series and how these webinars can be used in parent programming. Interactive activities share strategies and tips to enhance capacity to raise healthy, safe, and happy children.
The Wonderful World of Parenting: Parenting Roles and Responsibilities
This interactive virtual session explores the various hats that parents and caregivers wear. Participants reflect on how they carry out and feel about their various roles and responsibilities. This session offers opportunities to understand why these roles are important, how responsibilities can be reframed, and why taking care of oneself is a crucial part of caring for others.
All children depend on the adults around them to provide safe, healthy environments to learn, grow, and develop new skills. This presentation supports parents and caregivers in preparing for each stage of child development to better predict and prevent injuries. Unintentional childhood injuries are predictable and preventable, yet they persist as a leading cause of hospitalization and death for children in Canada. By recognizing and addressing common hazards in a child’s environment, parents and caregivers can keep their children safe from life-altering injuries without any bubble wrap.
The Supporting Parents Webinar Series focuses on topics to help parents and caregivers learn how to create environments that help children thrive. These webinars can be used as part of parenting groups or can be used by parents and caregivers independently. Interactive activities are used to share strategies and tips to enhance capacity to raise healthy, safe, and happy children. A recording of the webinar content and activity instructions will be available after each event.
This interactive webinar includes an overview of brain development and stress awareness, and introduces participants to the book My Curious Brain, the My Curious Brain Resource Room, and the My Curious Brain User Guide. These fun and educational resources can be used by parents and caregivers to teach children about how the brain works, big emotions, and how to manage them. With greater awareness of stress and how the brain works, children and the adults in their lives can develop self-regulation skills and strategies to help them effectively deal with stressors.