Infant mental health
Welcome to the Infant mental health learning pathway. This pathway is designed for anyone who works with infants, toddlers, parents of young children, and families. It invites practitioners to broaden their working context from being solely adult-focused or solely infant-focused, to considering the whole family.
When people think of ‘mental health’, they often think of older children and adults. But infants and toddlers can and do experience positive mental health and mental health difficulties. The early years of a child’s life – from conception to toddlerhood – are vital in shaping their long-term mental health and wellbeing, making prevention and early intervention a key focus for practitioners.
At this age more than any other, a child’s caregiving relationships and environment are crucial in determining their mental health outcomes. Practitioners in all services have an important role to play in identifying the signs of mental health difficulties in infants and toddlers, and supporting parents in their role as caregivers.
This pathway draws on current infant mental health research, clinical insights from practitioners and obstetricians, and the real-life experience of families. It will build your knowledge around the importance of this period for children’s health, development and lifelong wellbeing, as well as your confidence in identifying the signs of mental health difficulties in young children. They offer interventions and strategies to support parents who are experiencing mental health difficulties themselves, and a framework to help you support the whole family, no matter your service setting.
Learning outcomes
As you progress through this learning pathway you will build your understanding and skills across a range of key areas, including:
- the building blocks of infants’ and toddlers’ social and emotional wellbeing
- factors that can influence social and emotional wellbeing and development
- the experiences of and ways to support infants, toddlers and parents in families where parents experience mental illness
- the significance of infant and toddler brain development in the first five years
- identifying how infants’ nonverbal cues for connection and curiosity contribute to communication and relationship development with their primary carers
- how parents can nurture secure, flourishing mental health and development by engaging responsively in children’s play and curiosity
- how to apply respectful curiosity in exploring opportunities and challenges with parents
- entry points and opportunities to have respectful and collaborative conversations with parents, with the aim of supporting them to promote positive social and emotional wellbeing for their infants
- reflecting on ways to provide support and guidance that is relevant and appropriate to the parent’s, family’s and infant’s circumstances; and
- strategies for providing quality resources and information to parents.