In this episode, practitioners, researchers, parents and young people explore strategies and shifts to better support infant, child and adolescent mental health in Australia. They discuss the need for better collaboration between professionals and more integrated services; for improving mental health literacy among community members; and for shifting away from using diagnostic thresholds to determine who can access mental health support.

To mark the 200th episode of the Emerging Minds podcast, we wanted to look to the future of infant and child mental health in Australia. Practitioners, researchers, parents and young people discuss the key concerns and priorities for supporting infants’ and children’s mental health, common misconceptions about mental health and wellbeing, and systemic barriers to improving outcomes for children and families.

In this episode from our Emerging Minds Families podcast, Kirsty (Schools Coordinator, Shine SA) discusses ways to equip children with the knowledge and skills to make informed and empowered decisions about their bodies and relationships. Kirsty shares how parents can start these conversations with their children, how adults can effectively model consent, and how these conversations support children’s wellbeing.

In this podcast episode, Professor Daryl Higgins shares his research insights on child-safe organisational strategies and public health approaches to protecting children. Daryl was involved in the 2023 Australian Child Maltreatment Study (ACMS), which showed how disturbingly common it is for children in Australia to experience abuse and neglect. Daryl shares the findings from this study and its implications for prevention and early intervention policies and practices with children and young people.

In the second episode of this two-part series, Dr Carmela Bastian talks with child protection specialists Dr Amy Bromley, Arabella Stravolemos and Chloe Henderson about their approaches to child-centred practice. The conversation explores descriptions of practice that genuinely prioritise children’s safety, emotional needs, wellbeing, voice and rights.

In the first episode of this two-part series, Dr Carmela Bastian talks with child protection specialists Dr Amy Bromley, Arabella Stravolemos and Chloe Henderson about their approaches to child-centred practice. The conversation explores descriptions of practice that genuinely prioritise children’s safety, emotional needs, wellbeing, voice and rights.

In this episode, Dana Shen speaks with Jem Stone, a practitioner with Wayapa Wuurrk, the first internationally accredited Indigenous wellness program. Wayapa Wuurrk combines earth mindfulness, narrative meditation, physical movement storytelling and earth reciprocity to create a holistic wellbeing program for children in education settings. Jem takes listeners on a unique journey of collective wellbeing, encouraging practitioners to connect themselves to nature.

In this episode, therapist Sophie McEvoy discusses her work with children who have experienced sexual abuse. Sophie describes her practice in helping children to use their own words, communication preferences and meaning-making to describe the trauma events in their lives in ways that are supportive and hopeful. She also shares her experiences in working with non-offending parents to support their children’s recovery.

Parental incarceration can have a significant impact on children’s mental health and wellbeing. In this episode, senior mental health counsellor Linh Nguyen shares how she supports incarcerated fathers to overcome barriers and build strong, lasting relationships with their children.

In the second episode of this two-part series, neonatologist Dr Natalie Duffy explores the key themes expressed by infants and parents with lived experience of being hospitalised in the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU). This episode considers how this window into the infants’ world can guide practitioners to engage in ways that are lifesaving and nurturing of both physical and mental health development.

In the first episode of this two-part podcast, neonatologist Dr Natalie Duffy provides insight into the impacts of hospitalisation in the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) on infants and parents. Natalie shares how she observed, listened to and was guided by the voices of infants in her research into the lived experience of those in NICU.

In this episode, we speak with family counsellor Carolyn Markey about her work gathering and documenting children’s knowledge, and how this knowledge can then be shared with others, particularly fathers.

In this episode, we are joined by Zaccariah Cox, the Manager for Social and Emotional Wellbeing and Mental Health at Kimberley Aboriginal Medical Services (KAMS), and Erica Spry, Senior Aboriginal Research Officer at KAMS and a research fellow at the University of Western Australia. Erica and Zac share what they heard when speaking with expecting and new fathers in rural and remote Western Australia, who often feel overlooked in their journey of fatherhood.

In this episode, we’re joined by Professor Damien Riggs, a professor in psychology at Flinders University and a psychotherapist who specialises in working with transgender young people. In this conversation, Damien talks about gender-affirming practice. He shares how practitioners in general health and social services can use their skills to work with children and young people in gender-affirming ways that support their mental health and wellbeing. He also explores how practitioners can seek learning opportunities to increase their knowledge and confidence in working with gender diverse children and young people.

In this episode, we’re joined by Arianne, a parent of six children between the ages of 8 and 22. Arianne is a strong advocate for her transgender child and the wider transgender community. In this conversation, Arianne shares her family’s experience of supporting their daughter through coming out and transitioning, navigating services, and what practitioners can do to provide gender-affirming support in their practice.

In this podcast episode, we hear from Dr Lyn O’Grady, a community psychologist, and David Newman, a narrative therapist and social worker, as they share their insights on recognising and responding to self-harming behaviour with children.

In this episode, narrative therapist and social worker David Newman shares his approach to working with children and young people who are experiencing suicidal ideation. Through the lens of narrative therapy, David discusses how he negotiates conversations about distress, despair and suicide.

In the second part of this two-episode series, we continue our conversation with Lyndsay Healy, Dr Rickie Elliot and Dr Louise Wightman about collaboration with families and clear communication between professions to promote children’s mental health in the early years.

In the first part of this two-episode series, Lyndsay Healy, Dr Rickie Elliot and Dr Louise Wightman join us to explore how collaboration with families and clear communication between professions promotes children’s mental health in the early years.

In this episode, practitioners and parents of autistic and ADHDer children explore ways to build children’s self-regulation and advocacy skills, foster acceptance of their neurodivergent identity, and uncover the ‘why’ behind their behaviour.