After the inspiring story I highlighted yesterday of how a woman took control of her life and became happier within herself, I shift the focus to some recent figures which show that children seem to be reporting suffering from mental health problems more frequently and in larger proportions than before.
Some of the counsellors at the charity Relate, which offers counselling to roughly 15,000 children a year, have reported young people are becoming increasingly referred due to mental health problems. One of the areas in which the children are being 'stressed' has been reported to be the burden of social media sites.
Just under a third of those polled from the ages of 13 to 18 said they felt stressed all or most of the time. As we know, being stressed for long periods of time often leads to depression.
The report goes further, and it's really not a very inspiring read, but to see The Press Association release click here .
The good news is that there has been a lot of research to show that exercise can help with improving moods in those suffering from stress or depression. So it might be time to implement such things as compulsory supervised exercise sessions for those under 18 years of age. Nothing new I hear you say, some of you may shudder at the memory of PE teachers with Hitler style moustaches making you jog outside in freezing weather in your shorts. Rightly so, there should be a balance, exercise should be administered to the children in such a way as to make it fun and enjoyable. In the past some so called 'sports teachers' were nothing more than bullies and now the schools have (hopefully) gotten rid of the dead wood there may be more options for bringing in those Physical Education teachers who have a little more compassion, and not just 'tough love' in their tool kit. There are camps and weekends, gyms and more to help with training children to look after their bodies and minds.
If you have children yourself, try to involve them in your exercise sessions as much as possible, try to make them see it as fun. You don't have to do it to extremes, especially if you are already doing the best you can for your children in other areas of their life.
Stay Healthy!
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