In the name of Allah, the Beneficent, the Merciful.
Allah (SWT) intends for us happiness and ease in our lives Q2:185.
As Muslims, we believe in this ayat and it brings more courage and resilience to ward away our stress.
Post covid situation has brought many of our young people into emotional distress like phobia, panic attacks, feelings of isolation, stress, anxiety and even depression. In lieu of these, many parents are worried about what their children are going through and many struggles to combat this battle.
What we should be aware of as parents👇🏼
Writing from my personal experience as a Therapist and currently working with young people and families, it is important for us to know as parents that our children’s emotional health symptoms begin at the start of puberty between the age of 12-15 years and there could be individual differences in this regard.
Due to the individual differences and circumstances, worries tend to differ amongst young people – they might be experiencing difficulties accessing their emotions without the support of their parents /guidance. Because 90% of their brain is developed at teens whilst the remaining 10% are still developing till around 22 years of age.
Therefore, adolescents minds are liable to huge emotional and psychological changes.
Although many young people might not be diagnosed as having mental health issues their feelings could be low self-esteem, lack of confidence, feeling of unhappiness, bullying, crying, withdrawing from others, amongst others. The fear of uncertainty because of post-pandemic, or due to effect of their parents’ unstable relationship, the effect of domestic violence, commencing menstruation, physical changes in the body, body image issues, the problem of identity, etc, could be other factors for young people’s emotional distress.
As a result of these, it has become imperative to seek early intervention support for them.
Communication is very important, they should be free to talk with us as parents.
Young people sometimes internalise issues but bottling up will often contribute to their stress.
They need to learn strategies and be equipped with tools:
🔸 to develop better interpersonal skills.
🔸 to have self-compassion and accept who they are.
🔸to avoid negative thoughts and feelings, because it will create negative impacts on their behaviour.
As parents, encourage and support increased Connection with Allah.
Encourage your child to seek the help of a Counsellor or Therapist 💝 if conditions persist.
To be continued In shaa Allah….
I pray that Allah ease all our affairs and grant us the tawfeeq to nurture our children to the path of Allah Aameen.🤲
©Copyright by Nurat Adelopo
Clinical Hypnotherapist and Counsellor
https://www.nuratadelopo.com
