Psychology Lecturer; This is the reason for the importance of maintaining mental health from an early age

• 06 Apr
• 2022

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Psychology Lecturer; This is the reason for the importance of maintaining mental health from an early age

• Article
• By Uswah Sahal
• Health
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The mental health problems of recent years have come as a shock to many. The reason is that since the Covid-19 pandemic the number of people suffering from mental health disorders has increased, social isolation, financial worries and fear have made people become depressed and excessively anxious.

Psychology Lecturer at Muhammadiyah University of Surabaya (UM Surabaya) Dewi Ilma Antawati explained that health is a condition of psychological well-being that is realized by individuals. He explained the reasons for the importance of maintaining mental health.

“Mental health affects how we think, feel and act. With good mental health, a person can face the pressures of everyday life, work productively, and contribute to society," said Ilma Wednesday (6/4/22)

He emphasized that mental health is important from an early age. Mentally healthy children at an early age mean that they have reached optimal developmental stages, mastered healthy social skills, and are able to cope well with the problems they face.

"Children who are mentally healthy will have a good quality of life and can adapt well wherever they are," Ilma added.

Ilma further explained that mental health can affect the ability to think. Because at an early age, the child's brain develops very rapidly, one of which is the formation of synapses. Synapses are connections between nerve cells that play a very important role, especially in the formation and access (recall) of memory in the thought process.

“This synapse can strengthen and weaken over time, until it can also die. The more synapses that are formed, the better one's thinking ability, and vice versa," he added.

Mental health conditions impact the formation and loss of synapses. Research in the field of neuropsychology shows that chronic stress, depression is associated with a decrease in the number of synapses in the central areas of cognition and emotion, namely the prefrontal cortex and hippocampus.

In his statement, he also explained the impact if mental health is not developed early on. Children's mental health problems can come from internal factors, namely genetics, the mother's pregnancy history, as well as health conditions, and external factors that come from the environment around the child.

"If a child is exposed to difficult environmental conditions, such as domestic violence or negative parenting, then biologically the stress response in the child will increase and the child will become vulnerable to experiencing mental health problems," he explained.

Prolonged severe stress has an impact on physical and mental problems in children, and causes physical problems, such as heart disease and diabetes, as well as psychological problems such as depression and anxiety.

If this problem is not addressed, it will have an impact on unbalanced hormone levels, have an impact on school readiness and academic achievement, to the risk of physical and mental problems at a later age. Mental health at an early age is the foundation for mental health in the future. Mental health problems at an early age can interfere with a child's ability to learn and have healthy relationships.

Finally, he gave tips on how to build mental health from an early age. He emphasized that so that children do not develop mental health problems, parents need to have good mental health. Parents are a model of behavior for children, so that the mental health of parents will also affect the mental health of children.

The way parents deal with stress effectively and the healthy living habits that parents do will be an example for children to learn healthy stress management. As much as possible create an environment that is warm and full of acceptance (unconditional love) for children, so that children can develop a healthy mentality.

"Parents also need to be sensitive to children's behavior, sensitive when children feel uncomfortable or experience a problem. Give time to listen to what the child is experiencing, as well as to play with the child so that the child feels more comfortable. If you have a serious problem and parents don't know what to do, don't be reluctant to contact a professional in the field of child mental health," he concluded.