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Support available of the holidays.

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This is an excellent website with supports for young people and families who may be struggling with their mental health.

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YoungMinds | Mental Health Charity For Children And Young People

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YoungMinds are a mental health charity for children, young people and their parents, making sure all young people can get the mental health support they need.

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Kooth Online Counselling and Support Service

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Kooth Online Counselling and Support Service

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UK based free online mental wellbeing community.

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Some hints and tips for things to do over the holidays that will make you feel good!

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Explore Kooth - All kinds of articles, stories and content to help you through tough times

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The summer holidays can mean lots more free time. But it's easy to let the days go by, get lost in your phone, and down in your mood. So we asked hundreds of young people for their ideas for simple things to do - that make you feel GREAT!

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On this page, you'll find information to help you support your child or young person with grief and loss.

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On this page, you'll find information to help you support your child or young person with grief and loss. We've also got advice about where you can find grief support services.

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Guide Menu for Grief and loss

What is grief?

Losing someone we love and feel close to, or going through a bereavement, can be extremely painful. Grief is our natural response to this loss, and it is a process rather than an event.

Your child or young person, as well as you and other family members, may be grieving because:

someone in the family has died, like a parent, grandparent or sibling

their friend or someone at school has died

they have lost someone by suicide

someone they are close to has become ill

a pet has died or been lost

What does grief feel like?

Grief feels different to every individual child or young person. Our feelings around grief also change over time.

It's important to remember that there is no right or wrong way to grieve. It's okay to feel whatever emotion we do, and to process it in our own way. It's a time for being kind and patient with ourselves.

You might sometimes hear people talk about the 'stages of grief' or the 'grief cycle'. These describe some of the common feelings that people who are grieving can experience.

What are the 'stages of grief'?

1. Denial - for example, feeling confused, numb or in shock.

2. Anger - this might be towards the person who has died, or with the world in general.

3. Bargaining - for example, going over things from the past, or feeling guilty or anxious.

4. Depression - this might feel like intense sadness or loneliness about living without the person.

5. Acceptance - this might be feeling more able to live with our grief, rather than feeling we have 'got over it'.

It's important to understand that not everyone experiences all these things, and that we do not move through these stages one-by-one.

We might move forwards or backwards between them, or experience them in any order. Or we might feel different emotions.

Your child or young person might also experience some of the physical signs of grief. These can include:

waves of crying, which can sometimes feel like they come out of the blue

feeling unwell or sick

eating more or less than before

being extremely tired

finding it difficult to get to sleep

finding it difficult to concentrate, including at school

It's helpful to remember that it is normal for your child or young person to feel and experience these things after a loss.

Tips for talking about grief and loss

If your child doesn't want to talk

If your child or young person feels uncomfortable about talking, you could try starting a conversation while doing an activity. This can help them to relax by making it feel less like a 'big chat'. Have a look at our activity suggestions to get some ideas.

It's also okay to give them some space, especially with older children and teenagers. Sometimes it helps to just sit together quietly, or to offer a hand squeeze or hug. Reassure them that it's okay to talk to someone else they trust too.

You can find more tips about talking in our guide.

Helping your child or young person to cope with grief

Supporting your child or young person with a sudden death

When someone they're close to dies suddenly or unexpectedly, children and young people are likely to feel extremely shocked. They may find it impossible to believe that it's happened, or feel numb and empty. They might find it difficult to talk, or to eat or drink. They may experience physical symptoms like tummy aches, headaches and being extremely tired. These reactions are a normal way of coping with huge shock.

In the days and weeks after a sudden death, the most important thing you can do is provide safety and support.

Grief and loss support services

There are lots of organisations who provide counselling and other types of support to families, children and young people after a bereavement.

Sometimes, the grieving process starts before someone dies. For example, when we know they are ill and they are going to die soon. This is sometimes called 'anticipatory grief'. In pre-bereavement counselling, your child or young person can talk through their feelings and worries. Some hospices and other organisations offer this service. Speak to the professionals supporting your family to see what's available.

In bereavement or grief counselling, your child or young person will have a space to talk. They can also start to process some of their feelings around what's happened. You may be able to access this service through:

Let your child or young person know about the grief support services that are available to them via phone, text or online chat. You can find a list of support services below.

Over the longer-term, a counsellor or therapist can listen, provide emotional support and help your child or young person to make sense of their feelings. They can also support them to find ways of coping. You can find out how your child or young person can access counselling and therapy in our guide for parents.

If you have wider concerns about your child's mental health, it's a good idea to speak to the GP about next steps. They can find out more about what's going on and refer your child for more specialist help.

Looking after yourself

Supporting a young person who is grieving can be a very emotional experience. Take time to look after yourself and top up your own batteries when you can. If you are also grieving, things may feel overwhelming at times. Allow space for your own grief too. Remember that it's okay to ask for help from family and friends when you need it.

If you need support with your own grief, or you're struggling to cope, it's really important that you get the help you need. This will make you more able to be there for your child. You can access counselling, helpline support and support groups via the grief services listed below.

Useful helplines and websites

While we take care to ensure that the organisations we signpost to provide high quality information and advice, we cannot take responsibility for any specific pieces of advice they may offer. We encourage parents and carers to always explore the website of a linked service or organisation to understand who they are and what support they offer before engaging with them.

Help us improve our content

Whether you love the page or think something is missing, we appreciate your feedback. It all helps us to support more young people with their mental health.

Please be aware that this form isn't a mental health support service. If your child is in crisis right now and you want to talk to someone urgently, find out who to contact on our urgent help page.

At YoungMinds we take your privacy seriously. If you'd like to read more about how we keep the information we collect safe, take a look at our privacy policy.

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A guide to supporting a child or young person with grief, bereavement or loss, including information about finding grief counselling and other help.

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Information for Young People

We all have mental health and it’s okay to start talking about it. If you're struggling right now, you aren't alone.

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Information for Young People on Mental Health | End Mental Health Stigma and Discrimination

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If you're a young person then we have all the information you need on mental health stigma and discrimiantion, including how to talk to adults, what stigma is, and how you can help to tackle it.

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Watch the following video clip "Flipping you lid" then complete the hand model of the brain activity sheet below.

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Looking for advice on how to sleep better? Tweak your routine and understand the science behind your sleep patterns.

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Kooth Talks CYP Facing: Tips for managing exam stress and how Kooth can support you

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Advice website aimed at teenage girls, but useful for all!

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Girlhood is a blog encouraging girls to share their stories, ask other girls for advice, and promote a message that is all-too-necessary in a world plagued by insecurity and disconnection. We want every girl to know that they belong and that there are individuals all over the world willing to help —

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A website that helps parents and carers navigate the world of video games.

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A big reason parents use our database is for the curated lists of games. These are hand-picked selections by our team, to help you find unusual and interesting games for your family. Here are some popular lists at the moment, or you can browse the full selection:

These lists have just been added to the database in the last few weeks.

These are games that are helpful for mental health. This includes games that have been helpful for specific mental health challenges, as well as games that help us understand the challenge faced by the people we love. Some of these are designed to be used as a source of games that offer wellbeing in different ways.

These relate to games with different educational benefits. Along with games that are designed to be educational, this includes games that can inspire learning and knowledge because of the worlds and stories they create. The collateral learning uncovered here is a glimpse into the ways games can help children learn about themselves, their community and the world.

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Family Video Game Database - Guides, Ratings and Suggestions

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A big reason parents use our database is for the curated lists of games. These are hand-picked selections by our team, to help you find unusual and interesting games for your family. Here are some popular lists at the moment, or you can browse the full selection: These lists have just been added to the database in the last few weeks.

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Some really good support and advice Advice from CEOP Education on safe internet use.

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If you are under 18, report online sexual abuse to one of our Child Protection Advisors at the CEOP Safety Centre.
Report now
If you're over 18, call 101 to speak to your local police.

If you're ever in immediate harm or danger:

Call the police on 999 straight away

Tell an adult you trust who will be able to support you through a difficult time

The Mix is a charity that provides free information and support for under 25s.
www.themix.org.uk
Use their crisis messenger by texting THEMIX to 85258.

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If you are under 18, report online sexual abuse to one of our Child Protection Advisors at the CEOP Safety Centre. Report now If you're over 18, call 101 to speak to your local police.

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SafeSpot is designed to help you through tough spots.

SafeSpot gives you your own personalized coping plan, useful strategies and tools to help and directions to local resources to help you -- all at your fingertips.

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More

Twitter

Are you a social media addict? Keep up to date with the latest SafeSpot news as well as our tweets giving you up-to-date information about #youthmentalhealth

Close

SafeSpot is an innovative approach empowering young people to be able to be aware of their own emotional wellbeing and mental health.

This website uses cookies to improve your experience. We'll assume you're ok with this, but you can opt-out if you wish. Accept Read More

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More Are you a social media addict? Keep up to date with the latest SafeSpot news as well as our tweets giving you up-to-date information about #youthmentalhealth Close SafeSpot is an innovative approach empowering young people to be able to be aware of their own emotional wellbeing and mental health.

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The Lifebabble team tackle issues important to young people. The team talk about sleep - how important getting enough is, and how they feel when ...

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The Lifebabble team tackle issues important to young people. The team talk about resilience - what it means and how resilience can help in situations.

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Cristiano Ronaldo Body Transformation | THE SUPER ATHLETE | HD

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Cristiano Ronaldo Body Transformation | THE SUPER ATHLETE | 2015 HD Cristiano Ronaldo was branded 'too skinny' as a youngster - and that pushed him to put in the hard work to become the world's best.

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The Lifebabble team tackle issues important to young people. The team talk about food and how important it is to get the right balance.

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The Lifebabble team tackle issues important to young people. The team talk about exercise and how it can affect how you feel.

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Read through the following power point and then complete the worksheet below

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How and when we experience anxiety is as individual as we are. The ways that we cope with and manage it are different too. This ...

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Use this sheet to help you identify what your mindset is

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Draw a love heart and colour in different sections of it to show different things that you are thankful for/enjoy at the moment (You could also do this in the computer, but ideally get some time away from the screens). This activity means that you be creative, take part in some mindfulness colouring, and most importantly express gratitude (thanks) for the things you are grateful for at the moment. If we are feeling down/stressed, this can help to make us feel better. See the example below

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Take a little down time and relax with our wordsearch

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This is one of the word searches for the #15daywellness challenge. Make sure to take a screenshot when you are done!

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This is a collection of downloadable self-help guides that may be useful to you.

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​ Websites Apps Videos Books Coronavirus

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SilverCloud for Helping Children and Teens TWO NEW ONLINE COURSES FOR PARENTS AND CARERS, DESIGNED TO HELP YOU HELP THE PEOPLE YOU LOVE NHS Lanarkshire are delighted to offer two new free online

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The following video clips give hints and tips on creative ways to express yourself.

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I Express Myself Through Art with Hannah Brooks, Annabelle Davis & More | BAFTA Kids

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I Express Myself Through Dance with Oti Mabuse, JJ Chalmers & Christina Andrea | BAFTA Kids

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I Express Myself Through Creating Content with Nikki Lilly, Luke Franks & More | BAFTA Kids

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I Express Myself Through Writing with Shaun Duggan, Sharna Jackson and More | BAFTA Kids

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There are a number of online courses available for parents. Click on the document below for information on how to access these.

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Click below to access clips about some common feelings and mental health symptoms, how to cope, and where to go to get help.

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Feeling different from usual or noticed a change in your behaviour? Find out about some common feelings and mental health symptoms, how to cope, and where to go to get help.

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This booklet has been designed to help teenagers learn about themselves and gain life skills to channel their motivations to get what they want. It’s intended to get them thinking about what they’d like to do and start to plan how to get there.

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Self Care Guide during times of uncertainty

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Self Care Guide during times of uncertainty

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Toolkit Selfcare Times Uncertainty COVID19 

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Click below to access loads of clips on mental health.

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All the latest BBC Bitesize content about mental health.

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Welcome to the Greenfaulds  HS Health and Wellbeing page.  There are lots of clips, activities and resources for you to dip in and out of  and use as you wish. 

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Welcome to the Greenfaulds  HS Health and Wellbeing page.  There are lots of clips, activities and resources for you to dip in and out of  and use as you wish. 

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Take a little down time and relax with our wordsearch

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This guide is based on Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT). CBT helps you to examine how you think about your life, and challenge negative automatic thoughts to free yourself from unhelpful thought and behaviour patterns.

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This is an excellent website with supports for young people and families who may be struggling with their mental health.

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YoungMinds | Mental Health Charity For Children And Young People

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YoungMinds are a mental health charity for children, young people and their parents, making sure all young people can get the mental health support they need.

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What is Self harm? Self-Harm Network Scotland