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Mental Health – Infants and Young Children
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Mental health is the emotional, social and behavioural wellbeing of any infant, child, young person or adult. All children, no matter their age, can have mental health problems. Good mental health is important for healthy development, and research tells us that recognising and addressing problems early can help improve outcomes.

💥Having good mental health involves
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💧being able to play, learn and be social with others
💧having healthy relationships and close bonds with family and friends
💧managing feelings and responses in a range of situations
💧being able to cope with challenges
💧having a positive outlook
💧developing and having good self-esteem.

💥Signs and Symptoms
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Mental health difficulties can occur in children of all ages and can result in social, emotional and behavioural problems. Babies and toddlers can have mental health difficulties for similar reasons to older children and adults. They learn about emotions and how to manage them by watching and copying grown-ups who are important to them.

It can be difficult to know if your baby or young child’s behaviour is a result of a mental health problem. The following symptoms may be a sign of social or emotional concerns in a baby, toddler or young child, especially if you notice these issues being present most of the time and affecting your child’s ability to cope with day-to-day life at home, childcare, kindergarten or school.

💥Babies and toddlers (0-4 years)

💧Consistently not sleeping well or having a change in their sleeping patterns (eg. more or less than usual).
💧Consistently not wanting to eat (food refusal).
💧Seeming really distressed, restless, grumpy, or irritable.
💧Being less playful or having limited types of play or games that they like
💧Consistently not wanting to be apart from a parent or carer (excessive clinginess).
💧Not wanting to make or keep eye contact with you (gaze avoidance).
💧Not crying or making few attempts to get their needs met (like being fed, having their nappy changed).
💧Yelling, kicking, hitting, biting and damaging things around them (it is normal for children to have tantrums at times).
💧Having lots of difficulties calming down when upset.