7 Things Parents Do That Negatively Impact Their Child's Mental Health

A child’s mental health is influenced by a lot of things but his or her parents’ have the biggest influence on their mental development. Mental health has lasting effects on a child’s life when he grows up and behavioral problems are also said to be results of how he was brought up.

In a study that was published in the US National Library of Medicine National Institutes of Health titled “Parenting and Child Mental Health,” it was stated that it has become very clear that mental health problems of people originate in childhood. Family aspects like the quality of care that children received from their parents make a huge difference in their future behaviors and view in life and it could either be for better or for worse.

This means that parenting plays a major part in the child’s development - physically and emotionally. Apparently, bad low-quality parenting and opting for harsh discipline will affect the child’s overall development including mental health.

Business Insider also reported that clinical research done by psychologists showed how adults suffered from poor parenting when they were still a child. "Parents are hugely influential for who their children are and how they act," Carl Pickhardt, a psychologist, told the publication. "However, what mediates that effect is the decision by the child to want to decide to follow that example or to differentiate from that."

To sum it up, some actions of the parents have negative consequences on a kid’s mental health. Below are some examples of things that parents could be doing wrong.

1. Parents who are abusing their kids in any way will make them suffer from high level of stress. When this happens, children can develop cardiovascular diseases or any age-related problems illness. Their mental health is also at risk because the stress could lead to depression.

2. Children with parents who do drugs may grow up with unstable minds due to misinformation. They might think what their parents is doing is alright and may emulate them as well when they become adults. In a worst-case scenario, a child could grow up violent or withdrawn.

3. Kids who were brought up by depressed parents are likely to have a hard time expressing their emotions. It will be hard for them to open up or usually pretend to be happy when they are dying inside.

4. Over-involved parenting may produce children with anxiety problems. This is the “helicopter” style of parenting where the parents get overly involved in their child’s life. These are the kids who were not allowed to play without their parents and they spend too much time together.

5. Another bad effect of the over-involved parenting style is the kid growing up feeling he is entitled as his parents give him so much attention. In adulthood, they will have a hard time being self-efficient.

6. Parents who abuse their kids at the emotional level will make them build walls of defenses so they can’t be hurt. This will be their shield so the will not feel any pain which is unhealthy.

7. Having "snowplow parents" will bring up children who will not be able to stand by themselves as everything was done for them. These are the parents who make sure that their kids’ path will be smooth by taking away all the obstacles so the kids grow up without knowing how to face the challenges in life.