Keeping Kids Cool: Navigating Mental Health on Summer Break

Logan Bowser • June 21, 2024



School has just ended for your kiddo and while they’re excited to soak up the sun, you’re wondering how you can best support them for these next few months! During the school year, your child has been engaged in brain stimulating activities, surrounded by their friends, and had access to positive adult role models. Especially for children and adolescents who thrive on having a set schedule for the day, many kiddos can be severely impacted by the transition to summer break. Here are some considerations for the summer as they transition out of their schools:


1. Having little to no routine: Data overwhelmingly indicates an association between having routines and positive developmental outcomes within children and teens. These can include positive effects across the board (e.g., cognition, self-regulation, social-emotional health, and physical health). Regardless of individual differences, routines provide feelings of safety, control, and comfort as your child knows what will happen next.


2. Reduced access to services: Children and teens are in schools five days a week with access to a multitude of professionals and services. Outside of the home, school is the number one place where students can receive necessary services designed to identify and treat social and emotional well-being issues.


3. Isolation from friends: Many students do not have a way to access their peers during the summer months if they are not yet able to drive, do not have access to transportation, or live far away from peers their age. Research has shown that social deprivation can have detrimental effects on a child’s brain development, self-concept, and mental health.


These considerations highlight just how protective school can be for your student’s mental health. Without the supports from the school, it is incredibly important to keep an eye out for any signs of decline in your kiddo’s mental health! Here are some strategies to be proactive in supporting your young ones over the summer:


  • Establish routines with your children to add some stability to their summer. A checklist can be a helpful tool to remind children and teens of daily tasks and activities. Here you can find a Summer Routine Checklist for your teens that can also be easily modified to suit the needs of a younger child.


  • Encourage them to engage in their hobbies. This may also be a great time to explore new interests with your children that are mentally and/or physically stimulating!


  • Help facilitate opportunities for social interactions to the best of your ability. These can include playdates or organized activities such as sports, camps, and community events.


  • Think about setting limits on your child’s screen time. Children and adolescents can experience a multitude of negative consequences in response to increased time in front of a screen, especially over the summer. Sleep problems, decreased socialization with family and peers, mood difficulties, and poor self-image are just some of the negative outcomes of excessive screen time. More information on screen time for children can be found here.


Some children and teens may experience a more drastic change in behavior that may warrant seeking out services from a mental health professional. Here are some signs and symptoms top look out for:


For younger children:


  1. Frequent tantrums or irritability
  2. Often fearful
  3. Complain of frequent stomachaches, headaches, or body aches with no corresponding medical concern
  4. Are in constant motion and cannot sit quietly
  5. Sleeping too much or too little
  6. Frequent nightmares
  7. Unusual fatigue
  8. Difficulty making or maintaining friendships
  9. Repeated actions or checking things many times for fear that something bad may happen


For older children:


  1. Feeling very sad or withdrawn for two or more weeks
  2. Seriously trying to harm or kill themselves, or making plans to do so
  3. Sudden overwhelming fear for no reason, sometimes with a racing heart or fast breathing
  4. Involved in multiple fights using a weapon, or wanting to badly hurt others
  5. Severe, out-of-control behavior that can hurt themselves or others
  6. Not eating, throwing up or using laxatives to make themselves lose weight
  7. Intensive worries or fears that get in the way of daily activities
  8. Extreme difficulty in concentrating or staying still that puts them in physical danger or causes school failure
  9. Repeated use of drugs or alcohol
  10. Severe mood swings that cause problems in relationships
  11. Drastic changes in their behavior or personality










Sources


Summer is Almost Here! Tips for Parents to Support Their Child’s Mental Health Over Break | CommUnity Crisis Services. (n.d.). Retrieved June 24, 2024, from https://builtbycommunity.org/summerbreak/


Why does summer break impact student mental health? | Pearson Assessments US. (2023, July 19). Www.pearsonassessments.com. https://www.pearsonassessments.com/professional-assessments/blog-webinars/blog/2023/07/why-does-summer-break-impact-student-mental-health.html


Boylan, K. (2019). Summer can be hard on kids with mental health problems. Journal of the Canadian Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry = Journal de l’Academie Canadienne de Psychiatrie de l’Enfant et de L’adolescent, 28(2), 44. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6691798/

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Mayo Clinic. (2020, February 26). Mental illness in children: Know the signs. Mayo Clinic. https://www.mayoclinic.org/healthy-lifestyle/childrens-health/in-depth/mental-illness-in-children/art-20046577

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Selman, S. B., & Dilworth‐Bart, J. E. (2023). Routines and child development: A systematic review. Journal of Family Theory and Review, 1(1). https://doi.org/10.1111/jftr.12549

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11 Simple Signs a Child May Have a Psychiatric Disorder. (n.d.). Child Mind Institute. https://childmind.org/article/11-simple-signs-a-child-may-have-a-psychiatric-disorder/

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Orben, A., Tomova, L., & Blakemore, S.-J. (2020). The Effects of Social Deprivation on Adolescent Development and Mental Health. The Lancet Child & Adolescent Health, 4(8), 634–640. https://doi.org/10.1016/s2352-4642(20)30186-3

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National Institute of Mental Health. (2021). Children and Mental Health: Is This Just a Stage? Www.nimh.nih.gov. https://www.nimh.nih.gov/health/publications/children-and-mental-health

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Reeves, S., & Unni, L. (2024, June 3). Summer Break Self-Care [Review of Summer Break Self-Care]. Texas Psychology & Assessment Center. https://www.texaspsychologycenter.com/summer-break-self-care

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AACAP. (2020, February). Screen Time and Children. Aacap.org; American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry. https://www.aacap.org/AACAP/Families_and_Youth/Facts_for_Families/FFF-Guide/Children-And-Watching-TV-054.aspx

Summer Break Self-Care

By Shanna Reeves and Latha Unni • June 3, 2024
 It’s officially summertime-- the temps are high, school is out, and the kids are home! While this fun period can serve as a nice break from school, it’s important for kids to practice self-care and instill a routine for themselves to upkeep their mental health. As a parent or caretaker, this may sound stressful and overwhelming, but we’ve got you covered with some helpful information, tips, and resources! Self-care What if I told you that self-care isn’t just things that you enjoy? It can also mean accomplishing necessary to-do’s that you might be putting off or avoiding. Practicing self-care doesn’t need to be an elaborate activity, it can be something as simple as setting a limit with how late you let yourself stay up and sleep in or having regular, balanced meals. The key is to pay attention to how choices in your life make you feel and prioritize those choices. For example, when I say I’m too busy for exercise, I find that I feel more sluggish, I don’t sleep well, and I usually don’t make the best choices in eating habits. Doing the basics to take care of yourself can go a long way for your mental health. Good Sleep Hygiene Good sleep hygiene can go a long way towards helping your kiddo get enough shuteye. Here is a breakdown of rules you should follow to ensure your child has good sleep hygiene: Environment – it’s important to have the right type of environment for quality sleep. Make sure your child’s bedroom is quiet, cool, and dark. Keeping boundaries and “zones” for certain activities in their room is also imperative to getting good sleep as it allows their brain to connect specific areas with those activities. For example, keeping their desk for work, a comfy lounge chair for relaxation, and their bed for sleep can help keep thoughts and stress about one activity away from the other. Activities – eliminating screen time and electronic use after lights out is a major sleep hygiene rule. Parents should try to steer their teens toward reading, drawing, or anything that doesn’t require charging. Consistency – while bedtimes and wake up times may be later, there’s nothing to say they can’t be consistent. According to Shcheeburg, “Rise times should stay consistently within a 2-3 hour range.” Keeping Routines Why is routine so important to teens? Adolescence brings with it intense physical, emotional, and social change. When so much of a teen’s life is in flux, the predictability of everyday routines is grounding. While a lack of routine could seem like freedom, research suggests that stable routines support teens’ overall mental health and wellbeing, whereas a lack of one can make them more vulnerable. A recent study from the University of Georgia found that teens with regular mealtimes, bedtimes, and after school schedules “reported less alcohol use, greater self-control and emotional wellbeing, and higher rates of college enrollment in young adulthood.” Even more impressive: consistent routines correlated with lower levels of the stress hormone epinephrine! A helpful way to instill these routines over the summer is to create a checklist of ideas. Here is an example of a fun way to get your child to schedule out their days:
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