Top Children's Books for Mental Health & Wellbeing | Must-Reads for Kids

Top Children's Books for Mental Health & Wellbeing | Must-Reads for Kids

Children's Mental Health Week is an important opportunity to highlight the well-being of young people, encouraging open conversations about emotions, self-esteem, and mental health. This week is about raising awareness, providing support, and ensuring children and teens feel seen, heard, and valued. Books can be powerful tools in this journey, offering comfort, guidance, and representation. 📖✨

🤔 Why Mental Health Matters for Children and Teens

Mental health affects everyone, and it’s essential to support and celebrate the well-being of all children. While mental health challenges are often part of neurodivergent experiences, they are not exclusive to neurodivergent children. All children benefit from stories that help them:

✅ Understand their emotions
✅ Build resilience
✅ Feel less alone

📊 Recent statistics show that 1 in 5 young people in England aged 8 to 25 had a probable mental disorder in 2023. This highlights the urgent need for accessible mental health resources and targeted support. 🚨

 MAKES SENSE TO ME: The Neurodivergent Bookshop Of Acceptance and Belonging 

MAKES SENSE TO ME is a specialist bookshop with a focus on neurodiversity. Naturally, our book recommendations always prioritise neurodivergent representation. 🌈🧠💡We exclusively sell books created by Neurodivergent and/or Disabled contributors, ensuring that our recommendations are rooted in authentic representation, firsthand understanding, and the latest research and insights. 📚🧐

By embracing difference and valuing unique perspectives, we work to eradicate the stigma surrounding mental health and neurodivergence. 🥰💙✨

📖 This list includes books for:
🐣Young children
🐥Pre-teens
🎓Teens
🧑🏻‍💻Adults supporting children’s mental health

Let’s create a world where every child feels supported, understood, and empowered! 🌍💖

Books for Young Children (Ages 0-10)

Exploring Emotions and Self-Understanding

  Image for Get the Giggles : An Invisible Things Book Image for Feel Calm : An Invisible Things Book Image for Invisible Things

  • Get the Gigglesby Andy J. Pizza & Sophie Miller
    An interactive board book that encourages laughter and joy, helping young children express emotions.
  • Feel Calm by Andy J. Pizza & Sophie Miller
    Offers exercises and tips to help children manage stress and find calmness.
  • Invisible Things by Andy J. Pizza & Sophie Miller
    Explores emotions and sensory experiences in a fun, imaginative way.

Building Confidence and Coping Skills

Image for You Are Loved Image for You Are Brave Image for People Need People : The award winning picture book poem from legendary poet Benjamin Zephaniah Image for The Missing Piece

 Image for The Healthy Coping Colouring Book and Journal : Creative Activities to Help Manage Stress, Anxiety and Other Big Feelings   Image for The Worry Workbook : A Kid's Activity Book for Dealing with Anxiety : 1

Neurodiversity, Disability and Self-Acceptance

Image for Square Me, Round World : Stories of growing up in a world not built for you Image for How Are You, Verity? Image for Moving On Up : Beat the bullies, make fearless friendships and deal with funny fails

Books for Pre-Teens and Teens (Ages 11-18)

Mental Health Awareness and Understanding

Image for A Kids Book About Depression  Image for A Kids Book About Mental Health Image for A Kids Book About Anxiety

Self-Advocacy and Workbooks

 Image for The Depression Journal : Creative Activities to Keep Yourself WellStanding Up for Myself : An empowering book for Neurodivergent kids and teens about boundaries, sensitivity, personal space, consent, power play and self advocacy, Paperback / softback Book The Teenager's Guide to Burnout: Finding the Road to Recovery by Dr. Naomi Fishe - Picture 1 of 1 Image for The Anxiety Recovery Journal : Creative Activities to Keep Yourself Well

Fictional Stories with Mental Health Themes

Image for When I See Blue : An inspiring story of OCD, friendship and bravery Image for Darius the Great Is Not Okay Image for Challenger Deep

  • When I See Blueby Lily Bailey
    A powerful novel about a young boy’s journey with OCD.
  • Darius the Great Is Not Okayby Adib Khorram
    A heartfelt novel about a Persian-American teen dealing with depression and cultural identity.
  • Challenger Deepby Neal Shusterman
    A deeply personal and insightful look into teenage mental illness.

Graphic Novel Memoirs of Mental Health Journeys

  Image for Everything Is OK Image for Marbles: Mania, Depression, Michelangelo and Me Image for Lavender Clouds : Comics about Neurodivergence and Mental Health 

Books for Adults 

Parents Supporting Children's Mental Health

Image for How to Raise Happy Neurofabulous Children : A Parents' Guide Image for I Can Fix This : And Other Lies I Told Myself While Parenting My Struggling Child Image for No Filters : a mother and teenage daughter love story

Educators Supporting Children's Mental Health 

Image for Acceptance and Commitment Therapy with Children : Applications and Strategies for Anxiety, Depression, Autism, ADHD, OCD and More  Image for The Mentally Healthy Schools Workbook : Practical Tips, Ideas, Action Plans and Worksheets for Making Meaningful Change Image for Can't Not Won't : A Story About A Child Who Couldn't Go To School

💭 Final Thoughts

Children’s Mental Health Week is a crucial reminder of the importance of emotional well-being in young lives. Books have the power to:

Validate experiences
Provide comfort and guidance
Encourage open conversations about mental health 💬

Here at MAKES SENSE TO ME, we embrace difference and disability. We understand that there are many ways to learn, process, and read. 📚✨ For that reason, we do not observe the national reading age; instead, we make recommendations based on the individual, not the norm. The age categories in this post serve as references and indicators of the type of content in each section. We believe that every reader should have access to books that resonate with their unique experiences and needs. 💡📚😍

Whether you’re a parent, educator, or caregiver, these books can help you support the children and teens in your life. Let’s continue fostering understanding, empathy, and resilience in young minds. 🌈🧠💖

Happy Children's Mental Health Week! 

You are Loved, You belong, You MAKE SENSE.

 

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