Low mood resources
Low mood or sadness are feelings that everybody experiences. For some, though, the feeling rarely passes and it can make even the smallest tasks feel impossible to manage. Motivation can feel non-existent, concentration can become hard, and appetite can be affected (wanting to eat more, or less). All this can lead to avoidance; less activity, fewer interactions with others, and fewer new experiences. This in turn leads to negative thoughts about yourself, others and the world around you. It may feel like a feeling you can never escape.
Dance in the puddles, look for the rainbows…
Life is tough. For some it might feel really tough, or like it’s never going to get better. If you keep avoiding, you are more likely to stay stuck in the darkness. But if you accept the tough stuff and carry on anyway, you’ll stand a better chance of finding a brighter patch.
Supporting your child/young person
If you want to learn more about low mood, and find ways to support your child/young person so that the low mood does not get in the way of what’s important in their life, then take a look at the following resources:
- Book a place on a parent carer workshop focusing on supporting young people with low mood or watch a pre-recorded parent carer workshop focusing on supporting young people with low mood: Supporting Our Young People with Low Mood - Parent Workshop - YouTube
- Download our low mood self-help guide: Sadness and Low Mood (nsft.nhs.uk)
- Download a Depression self-help guide | NHS inform
- Visit a website on Supporting Your Child With Depression and Low Mood (youngminds.org.uk)
- Watch our pre-recorded parent carer workshop focussing on understanding supporting young people who self-harm: Understanding young people's self-harm - YouTube
- Download a Parent guide to coping with self-harm https://www.psych.ox.ac.uk/files/news/copy_of_coping-with-self-harm-brochure_final_copyright.pdf
- Supporting your child: Self-harm and suicide Supporting-Your-Child-A-Guide-for-Parents.pdf (papyrus-uk.org)
- Call Young Minds parent helpline 0808 802 5544 (9am - 4.30pm Monday – Friday) or use a webchat service: https://www.youngminds.org.uk/parent/parents-helpline-and-webchat/
- Sign up to Self-Harm UK Alumina – Free online group self-help support group for 14-19 year olds. This is an online seven-week course for young people struggling with self-harm in the UK.
- If child is really struggling: Get help in a crisis (NHS 111, Option 2): Help in a crisis | Norfolk and Suffolk NHS (nsft.nhs.uk)
Content produced by the Psychology in Schools team.