Ah, the days of youth. It’s full of excitement and joy, but it’s also full of growing pains, hard lessons, and obstacles. Even while challenges are an inevitable part of life, they may often seem overwhelming – even for children.
How can parents and caregivers detect if a teenager’s hormones are normal or if anything more serious is going on? When is “poor conduct” pointing to something else entirely? How can parents and caregivers approach kids in a way that fosters trust and connection?
After two years of pandemic-induced isolation and disruption, Theresa Arriola, director of Guam Behavioral Health and Wellness Center, thinks this is an urgent concern.
“Adjustment troubles, depression, and socializing challenges are all on the rise among Guam’s youngsters.” As a result, the pandemic had a significant impact on everyone, particularly our children, who are still learning how to cope with everyday challenges,” Arriola explained.
According to Arriola, a child’s mental health is influenced by a multitude of factors, including genetic predisposition, traumatic events, and a lack of sleep or regularity. The presence of a stable, trustworthy adult in their lives is critical in assisting kids in learning to regulate the emotions that develop as a result of their experiences.
“The kid needs stability and to know what to anticipate from a loving adult in their home so that they can navigate and control their emotions and reactions to daily challenges.”
Everything that an adult has to deal with, a kid has to deal with as well, but they do not have the coping skills that adults do.
“There are the overt indications, which are the ones that you can see, such as arguing, screaming, bullying, fighting, and things of that sort.
“And then there are the subtle indications, the ones that aren’t so visible, like a change in eating habits, a change in sleeping patterns, something they used to love but now don’t, not spending time with specific individuals who they used to spend all of their time with.”
