Mental wellbeing is so important at this time for you and your children, and just as important as their physical health. Taking care of your mental wellbeing allows us all to develop resilience to cope with whatever life throws at us, and help our children grow into well-rounded, healthy adults.
Positive mental health can help an individual to recover more quickly from physical illness and early childhood experiences have been found to have a lasting impact upon a child’s mental wellbeing.
Physical activity has a huge potential to enhance mental wellbeing in our population. Even a short burst of ten minutes brisk walking or jogging on the spot or even yoga or can increase good mental health.
These activities below can be a great stress relief for people of all ages. That’s why we are really encouraging all the family members to take part in these activities. It’s fun, positive and something everyone will enjoy.
Activity 1 – Mindful Posing
- Do the superman pose by standing with your feet apart, fists clenched and arms reaching to the sky.
- Do a superwoman pose by standing as tall as you can with your legs apart and your hands on your hips.
Do these poses for a few times and then see how your children feel. You may be pleasantly surprised.
Activity 2 – My heartbeat
Being aware of your heartbeat is really important for you and your child’s mental wellbeing. To become more aware of it try doing some physical activity for one minute, like one minute of star jumps. When they have done this ask them to close their eyes and put their hand on their heart. What do they notice?
Try to also make them aware of their breathing and heart rate at times of less activity too.