Little things can make a big difference to the wellbeing of infants

What is infant mental health and wellbeing?

Mental health and wellbeing are important at every stage of life, including in the early years. When we talk about infant mental health, we are referring to a child’s capacity in their first five years of life to form close relationships, recognise and express emotions and explore and learn about their environment.

Within these first five years of life, the journey towards positive infant mental health involves developing close and secure relationships with adults and other children. Through these loving and nurturing relationships, children learn to experience, manage and express a full range of emotions. Children have the opportunity to form relationships and develop these skills in every area of their life including with their family, their community and in their early years establishment. Having positive experiences during a child’s early years can lead to positive mental health, which in turn can lead to healthy social and emotional development.

Why is infant mental health and wellbeing important?

Before the COVID-19 pandemic, 1 in 10 children in Scotland were reported to experience poor mental health (Green et al, 2004). More recent figures suggest this increased to 1 in 6 since the pandemic (NHS, 2020).

By prioritising and protecting infant mental health, we can set children on a positive developmental path, with the tools and skills needed to fulfil their potential. Whilst children’s futures are not determined by the age of five, research tells us that positive early experiences are linked to later life outcomes such as:

• peer relationships
• academic success
• wellbeing
• financial stability
• general health

We have an important role as adults to support infant mental health and wellbeing and many of the things you may do already can help this- you don’t need experts. Here are some ideas to support you.

Establishing close and secure relationships

• Forming close, loving attachments with children can support them to feel safe, learn and explore the world around them. You can form secure attachments with children by:
• talking to them using a warm and friendly tone.
• keeping children physically close e.g. by giving them cuddles.
• responding to their cries and reassuring them.
• getting down to the child’s level when communicating with them.
• modelling how to deal with tricky situations e.g. sharing and waiting their turn.
• showing you care by remembering things they care about e.g. likes and dislikes.

Learning about emotions

You can support children to experience, manage and express big or tricky emotions by:

• being calm and present e.g. reading a book or going for a walk together.
• commenting on what you think they might be feeling and why e.g. “I can see that you are sad that Jack has your toy, waiting is very hard”.
• modelling how to deal with these emotions in healthy ways e.g. “It is okay to be angry but it is not okay to hit others”.
• creating opportunities for children to experience and celebrate the ‘small wins’ e.g. praising them for good manners, giving them a sticker for tidying away their toys or taking a picture for their learning log when they try something new.

Encouraging exploration and curiosity

You can support children to explore their environment and learn by:

• creating a learning environment which feels safe, with clear, consistent boundaries and routines at nursery.
• engaging children in developmentally appropriate activities (BBC Tiny Happy People has lots of fantastic examples for activities).
• following the child’s interests.
• creating opportunities for play and having fun together.

Finally, it is vital for educators to nurture their own wellbeing in order to nurture the mental health of infants. You can’t pour from an empty cup, so it is essential that you recognise your own needs and prioritise some time for self-care when you need to. The more consistent you are the better, as this allows children to learn routines, feel safe and trust that you will be there to support and comfort them.

If you have concerns about the wellbeing of a child you are working with, you can discuss this with the child’s family and signpost them to other agencies for support. Families may be able to access community or parent-based supports in their local area. We have listed some resources below which you might find useful.

NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde- Kids Independently Developing Skills
Children First Parent Line
Autism Toolbox
The Parent Club- Wellbeing for Wee One
BBC Tiny Happy People