Positive childhood experiences

This is the second in a series of four articles this year about the effects childhood experiences can have on people throughout their lives. In the January article, we talked about negative childhood experiences and the lifelong impact they can have on physical and mental health.  This month we will shift the conversation to the protective effects of positive childhood experiences.

The great news is that just as traumatic experiences in childhood can impact people into adulthood, loving and supportive experiences in childhood can also impact people into their adult lives.  In 2015, a research study was done in Wisconsin that asked adults about their mental health and also about positive experiences they had in their childhood.  The researchers found that if a person had positive experiences as a child, they were less likely to have mental health struggles as an adult.  They also discovered that the more positive experiences a person had as a child, the better their mental health was as an adult.  More good news: the effect was the same for adults who had negative and difficult experiences as children.  This means that even if hard things happen to a child, if they also have positive experiences, it can protect their mental health as adults.  They are saying there is great hope!

In the next article, we will dive into what exactly is meant by positive childhood experiences and figure out how we can support youth in these protective ways.

For more information about negative and positive childhood experiences check out: https://centerforyouthwellness.org/, https://www.cdc.gov/violenceprevention/aces/index.html, or https://positiveexperience.org/.

You can make an appointment for your child to be seen at the Southern Ute Health Clinic to talk more about these topics or anything else by calling 970-563-4581.