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Young people who attend international schools often speak more than one language. This might be the language of their parents and the language of the country they live in, the language of their school, or all of these. Young people may also speak the languages of several other places they have lived in during their childhood. Language has a big effect on the way young people understand, experience, and express their emotions. When it comes to mental health support, languages are a tool for identifying and expressing feelings through a process of healing and positive change. For young people who speak multiple languages, the language they use in therapy may help them access and describe experiences and emotions from different parts of their lives. Sometimes, these experiences are best communicated without a spoken language at all through nonverbal expression and creative activity. 📝 Read on in our blog: https://bit.ly/4dxjAh4 #language #internationalschool #nonverbalexpression

Clean eating - often framed as a health pursuit - is a type of diet that involves eating foods that are considered healthy or without certain ingredients, like sugars or fats. Many people now participate in this; however, clean eating can negatively impact health, and it’s important that we understand the potential dangers, as creating rules around eating can take over other areas of life and become a primary measure of self-worth. Psychreg spoke with Fiona about the impact of clean eating and how we can prevent food and health trends from becoming harmful. 📰 Read more here: https://bit.ly/4bycpn6 #cleaneating #diet #foodtrends

Any young person can develop mental health problems, regardless of their gender, background, nationality, or other aspects of their identity. However, different groups of young people may be at a higher or lower risk of certain mental health issues than others. In the past years, researchers have explored the mental health risks faced by young people from affluent communities in Europe and North America. They have found that affluence is associated with mental health symptoms, including anxiety, depression, and substance abuse. The most recent research sheds light on the causes of these mental health concerns, with experts suggesting that characteristics of affluent communities – and particularly schools – may have the biggest impact, rather than the wealth of any individual family. These may include pressure and competition for places in schools and universities and a lack of community ties. Early research into affluent young people’s mental health also suggested that family dynamics might partly explain higher rates of anxiety, depression, and delinquency. However, as researchers looked deeper into the different factors influencing the well-being of young people in affluent communities, they found that while these family dynamics may exist, they were not the most important factor explaining young people’s mental health problems. 📝 Read on in our blog: https://bit.ly/44E8lPG #mentalhealth #affuentyoungpeople #familydynamics

Body checking is when a person repeatedly checks their weight or body shape. This might involve frequently weighing themselves, checking their body in mirrors, or looking at different parts of their body. Body checking is common among young people with eating disorders. Teenagers and adolescents with eating disorders usually over-evaluate their shape and weight. Instead of placing their self-value in different aspects of their identity and personality, all or almost all of their self-worth relates to their body. Behaviours like body checking may reinforce a young person’s distorted beliefs about their own bodies, increase body dissatisfaction, and cause them to place even more self-value in their shape and weight. Teenagers and young adults may check their bodies in various ways. It is often done secretly or hidden from others, especially if a young person experiences shame about their eating disorder. This behaviour may contribute to and maintain eating disorders, but there is help available. With effective treatment, young people with all types of disordered eating behaviours can reclaim fulfilling lives. 📝 Read more in our blog: https://bit.ly/44BT2qO #bodychecking #eatingdisorders #disorderedeating

When parents lie to their children or tell half-truths, it’s often because of their own discomfort rather than the childs. However, sugar-coating the truth will usually backfire as children eventually uncover the truth themselves. Honesty is incredibly important to children, even though for parents, it can be hard. Fiona discussed five strategies with Unzela Khan Sheikh that can help make it easier to navigate honesty with children. Read the article here: https://bit.ly/3ydjCL3 #honesty #parenting #truth

It’s normal for children to go through phases of selective eating. This might mean refusing to eat certain types of foods because of their texture, taste, a lack of interest in eating, or other reasons. While selective eating can be a normal part of child development, it is not usually permanent or severe enough to seriously damage their growth and health. However, research suggests that autistic young people may experience eating difficulties more often or more persistently than young people who are not autistic, and these habits may be linked to autistic traits, such as difficulties coping with change or sensory differences. While many eating habits are harmless, some can result in serious health problems, such as malnourishment or weight loss. In these cases, autistic young people may require additional support to manage and change harmful eating habits to more positive ones. You can read more in our blog: https://bit.ly/3wuRjXI #autism #eatinghabits #disorderedeating

It’s okay for young people to want to do well at school, whether that’s in exams, sports, or other activities. Setting high targets can be motivating and help some adolescents to realise their potential. But when standards become exceedingly high, it can start to affect a young person’s well-being – particularly if they tend to focus on their mistakes and are self-critical when standards are not met. Perfectionism is a risk factor for eating disorders and can help maintain anxiety, depression, and OCD. Perfectionism at school can sometimes be a clue that a young person is facing other mental health challenges. This blog explores what perfectionism is, why it develops, and how it can affect young people’s mental health. It also touches on how therapy can treat and address perfectionism to help young people recover and thrive. Read on in our blog: https://bit.ly/3UXe7ZS #teenmentalhealth #perfectionism #highstandards

Research suggests that more young children are using social media than ever before. Quite often, it’s a big concern for parents as children can be bombarded with information, much of which can be untrue or damaging. Fiona contributed to an Independent article by Yolanthe Fawehinmi discussing children’s social media use and being aware of negative body influences. You can read the article here: https://bit.ly/3xSMurq #socialmedia #youngpeople #negativebodyinfluences

Bullying in school is a huge social and public health problem across the world. School bullying affects young people’s well-being, academic performance, and mental health as adults. Research shows that young people who are bullied are more likely to develop several mental health disorders, including eating disorders, anxiety, and depression. Bullying is associated with serious symptoms of mental health problems, including violent behaviour, self-harm, and psychosis. Bullying can happen in real life or through virtual platforms such as social media or text messaging. This is known as cyberbullying. One-off incidents of harm are not usually considered bullying. Instead, bullying involves repeated patterns of hurtful actions that make it difficult or impossible for the person being bullied to defend themselves. The power imbalance between a bully and their target can be maintained by various factors, including popularity, physical strength, and age. Given the risks of bullying in school, preventing bullying should be a priority for schools and social services. Parents can also help by noticing the signs that a young person is being bullied or bullying others, having open and supportive conversations with their child, and working with their school. Read on in our blog: https://bit.ly/4bbdKQZ #school #bullying #schoolbullying