An Ounce of Prevention

By Karla Arroyo

“An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure” this statement cannot be more accurate when it comes to mental health and healthy lifestyles. As a caregiver, it is 100% on us to ensure our children have all the opportunities to create a better future. This is, getting them help when things are “not so bad” instead of waiting until they get “really bad”.

Children and youth are amazingly resilient and throughout their development are able to gain different coping mechanisms to deal with stress and hard times. However, when situations arise where the existing coping mechanisms don’t work or are insufficient to manage the situation, unhealthy coping mechanisms such as drugs, gang involvement, self-harm, etc., develop. Providing children and youth with unconditional support and love to manage a variety of situations and advocating for them to obtain help is the most valuable tool we as parents can use to prepare them for the hard times they will experience as they transition into adulthood.