The Psych Central Show: Candid Chat On Mental Health & Psychology

We discuss the importance of starting mental and emotional health conversations with children from a young age, highlighting the benefits for their emotional development and future stability and happiness.  In today’s episode, Rebecca Rolland, a Harvard lecturer and author, emphasizes that these discussions should be ongoing and developmentally appropriate, focusing not only on negative emotions but also on the positive aspects of mental health to build resilience and empathy.  Rolland encourages openness and adaptability in these talks, reassuring children they have support and an open line of communication for any emotional challenges they may face. “Just as children are constantly developing over time in, say, their ability to read, their ability to tie their shoes and do physical things, we want to think about them as developing emotions and emotional vocabulary. We wouldn't tell a 6- or 7-year-old, well, let's talk about the nuances of depression in the same way we would do that with a teenager. That wou