Self-Care Strategies by and for Youth (and for You, too!)

“Young people told us that when they are struggling, they are usually told to see a professional. They don’t often get much advice about how they could help themselves,” shared a team from the Anna Freud National Centre for Children and Families. In response, the Centre oversaw a systematic review of efficacy research on self-help strategies for youth. “Despite the increasing interest in the possibility of self-care, we lack evidence to guide this. We call for an expanded research agenda that evaluates self & community approaches.”

In the meantime, they consulted with over 100 young people, ages 11-25, to find which of the identified approaches the youth had tried and if they’d found them helpful. According to these respondents, the highest scoring strategies were listening to music (96%), home entertainment such as TV, books, film (92%), and personal hygiene (85%). Low scoring were light therapy (9%), over-the-counter medications (5%), and tai chi (3%). In a related project, the Centre collaborated with youth through the Common Room to create a collection of nearly 100 self-care ideas from activism and aromatherapy to text message support and warm baths.

As the website states, “These activities are not a substitute for seeing a mental health professional. Sometimes we need outside help and advice. Getting help is good. No-one should feel bad about it. That’s what this site is about.”

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