The effect of home life situations can cause the human mind to change, depending on the situation and what happens in the child’s life. Our brains develop at a pace slower than what most would anticipate. In this window of life, what gets taught to a child is vital, therefore new or current parents must be careful. However, it can be hardly helped because, in generations before us, mental health wasn’t the biggest worry. So much can be reflected on a child or teen without it even being realized.
From the Mental Health Center, what factors into the environment are family support and connection, communication, and behavior towards the child or children. The article “How Does Family Life Affect Mental Health? Building Blocks or Barriers”, by Kayne Hodge, goes over all of the factors mentioned prior to this explanation. Family support should be undivided and should help the growth of confidence as well as trust within the family. If support is not given, then as a child grow, they learn to second guess, to doubt their own choices which can lead to mental and emotional instability such as depression and anxiety. This in turn can lead to the child isolating themselves, which can be often looked down upon. However, the child is not the one to be at fault, but with the anxiety they can only feel guilty with no reconciliation.
The second factor is communication. In the same article, Hodge’s writing tells that there is a need for strong, positive communication that is consistent. The lack thereof led by conflict and criticism gives the listener mind-altering thoughts about the situation as well as themselves. A child can often question “What have I done this time?” when something gets brought up in the wrong tone if violent communication is repeated, revealing that they could feel as if they were the source of the issue. Avoiding this for a child or children is indeed avoidable. Be kinder, let them know that there is an open door to which there is little to no judgment. Any issues a child may be experiencing should be handled with care.
One last factor from this article is substance abuse. Using drugs and alcohol can get dangerous for a child. A lot of physical abuse can ensue which can put the child onto a road that branches off to an endless number of paths. Regardless of what kind of abuse gets experienced inside the home, plenty of mental conditions are the result of it such as Dissociative Identity Disorder, anxiety, (chronic) depression, suicidal thoughts, and/or tendencies. The mental health of a child is important for sure. How the brain develops mostly determines how one’s future can turn out.
According to the National Institute of Mental Health, our brains don’t stop developing until our mid to late twenties. In this time we learn habits, no matter how good or bad they are. Bad habits can stick rather quickly as opposed to good ones. From “The Teen Brain: 7 Things to Know”, by NIMH, there are several major contributions to how a teen thinks in their life, as implied by the title. From birth, the brain is growing and the prefrontal cortex is still maturing and developing until a person is in their twenties. The first sub-article informs the reader on how the teenage brain stops growing but is never done wiring itself as it needs to be.
The teen brain is ready to learn and adapt, yes, but development reflects social impact. A teenager’s brain responds to stressful events differently, and also often deems what is stressful or not for them. Making sure that a teen is confident and comfortable is hard and forcing them into what they don’t want to do is not an option whatsoever.
The parent and their child should not have to block themselves away from each other. Home is and should stay a safe place, not just another surrounding where they have to constantly watch their back. Society could be knocking them down enough as it is, comfort your child and let them know that everything is going to be okay without yelling at them or making them more insignificant. This is the future generation we’re trying to look out for. A good home life is very important, just as a child should be important to the parents. So parents, apply yourself to the responsibilities you hopefully prepared for. As the parental advisor, billyvsco, on TikTok would say: “Do better.”
