Common factors that affect Mental Health

We all have mental health, and it is expected for it to fluctuate with the highs and lows of life. However, prolonged periods of poor mental health can have a significant impact on a person’s wellbeing.

Risk factors

Mental health problems can have a wide range of causes. Certain risk factors can make some children and young people more likely to experience mental health problems than others. These factors often occur in combination with each other. It is important to note that different children and young people may be more deeply affected by certain things than others, and experiencing risk factors does not necessarily mean the child or young person will go on to have mental health problems.

Examples of risk factors that can lead to poor mental health for children and young people include:

• Homelessness or inadequate housing
• Experiencing discrimination
• Bereavement
• Having a long-term physical illness
• Parental separation or divorce
• Caring responsibilities
• Abuse, neglect or trauma
• Social disadvantage, poverty or debt
• Bullying or social isolation / breakdown of friendships
• Learning differences
• Lack of access to support services.

It can be especially hard for autistic children and young people to communicate issues relating to their mental health as they may find it hard to describe their feelings. It is therefore important to be aware that a sudden change in behaviour could be a sign of a mental health issue, even if the child has reported no symptoms.  

If a child or young person is feeling distressed or troubled, they may express this in a number of ways: 

• Unable to concentrate
• Behaving out of character – irritable, sad, depressed, loss of interest/enjoyment
• Not sleeping, having nightmares, wetting the bed
• Becoming disruptive in class
• Getting fussy about food, or cleanliness, or developing eating problems
• Trying to harm themselves
• Having trouble making friends, or finding relationships at home difficult
• Becoming fearful and resentful
• Getting into fights and becoming aggressive
• Increasing alcohol/drug use

(Source: NI Direct)

The Know Your Normal Toolkit is designed by and for autistic children and young people to help young people outline what their ‘normal’ is so they can explain to those who support them when they aren’t feeling themselves. 

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