Family circumstances can make or mar child’s mental health, says Ruqyah Ogubiyi, founder, Sane Mind

Ruqoyah Ogunbiyi is the founder of Sane Mind,an organization that provides products and services to build confidence and resilience in children.

For over 6 years, she has been a child and adolescent mental health professional lending her expertise in child mental health and designing interventions that promote mental wellness in children and address academic, behavioural and emotional challenges children go through

With a degree in pharmacy and a Masters degree in child and adolescent mental health from Africa’s premier Centre for Child and Adolescent Mental Health where she finished among the top 3 in her class. Sequoyah has trained over 5000 parents, teachers and corporate professionals on different aspects of mental health. Her organization has consulted for over 100 families on confidence building, family therapy and child psychotherapy.

The Sane Mind positive affirmation flashcards and family bonding calendar are being used by over 1000 families across Nigeria, Ghana and Kenya. Her goal this year is to build confidence and resilience in 4000 children through child-friendly products and campaigns.

Nigeria Xoress spoke to her recently:

 How did you get into child and adolescent mental health care?

Sometime in 2015, I was at a workshop where I heard a 15-year-old talk about how she had attempted to kill herself twice. As I listened to her, I began to see the correlation between childhood experiences and mental health and I knew I wanted to help, I wanted many more parents, schools and stakeholders of children to know more about child mental health. A year after I went on to organize a 3-day training for teachers and artisans on early signs of mental disorders. Then I got admission into a master’s program in child and adolescent mental health. After my masters, I just launched fully into creating products and services that promote mental wellness in children.

It was awesome actually, I had just graduated from pharmacy school, had a year of experience as an intern pharmacist at the psychiatric hospital Yaba. So, I knew the first line of action should be getting a qualification. Then when I did, the next line of action was to be able to communicate child mental health in lay terms. I got a lot of questions like “do children get depressed? Also, note that mental health discourse is just beginning to emerge so to now start talking about children’s mental health seemed far-fetched to many. So, I had to learn fast to communicate my expertise in an effective and efficient way such that it gets the attention it deserves.

I started Sane Mind because I wanted to make child mental health and indeed mental health becomes a household discussion. As I studied to be a child mental health professional, I realized that more emphasis on treatment than on everyday preventive strategies. So, I started Sane Mind to be able to provide child mental wellness interventions, because if we are able to address child mental health needs, the quality of life of the to-be adult would improve significantly and the mental disorders in adulthood would also reduce drastically.

I think my greatest achievement would be when a parent would send a message and say Thank you for a post or a product or service that changed their child’s life. This is what makes my heart genuinely full. However, over the past 6-years, we have had over 1000 children and families across Nigeria, Kenya and Ghana use our Positive Affirmation Flashcards and Family Bonding Calendar. We have trained over 20,000 parents and teachers on different correlates of child mental health like self-esteem, resilience, bullying, early signs of mental disorders, adverse childhood experience among others

What has been the shortcomings so far?

I think that would be the general adoption of mental health discourse and services. There’s still a huge misconception, especially with child mental health. Where preventive strategies may be considered as a “nice to have” and misconception for many mental health disorders in children. I mean, we would label a child with hyperactivity associated with ADHD (Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder) as being “playful” and not “controlling” themselves. Or depressed child as “ungrateful” among other really unhealthy stereotypes.  This definitely affects treatment-seeking and support available for children with these challenges.

What has been the most rewarding moments?

I think the most rewarding moments are when parents share voluntarily the effects of our positive affirmation flashcards and family bonding calendar. A parent once sent an email talking about using the family bonding calendar helped resolve the tension between her and her daughter, helped her uncovered the fact that she was being bullied and resolve her poor self-esteem.

The ripple effect of the use of any of our products, or pieces of training or even services is the most memorable to me and indeed the entire Sane Mind Team.

What are some of the changes you would like to see in the sector?

The key change I would love to see is integration and implementation-

Integration of child mental health and advocacy into routine mother and child care. Integration of child mental health into the school curriculum and teacher training programs. Integration of child mental health into routine care

What is the importance of bonding in families and how can it be achieved?

The family is a major determinant of a child’s mental health. Different aspects of the family circumstance can make or mar the child. So, to promote mental wellness in children we need to create numerous positive experiences. The family can ensure this through family bonding activities that are curated to improve cognitive skills, emotional intelligence, problem-solving skills and autonomy.

To achieve this you can set aside 30-minutes daily to engage in activities that touch on the emotional needs of children. Or, you could pick 1-3 days a week to form deep connections across different aspects of their lives. Our family bonding calendar breaks these down into easy to do activities.

What are your hobbies, how do you relax in your free time?

I recently started learning how to bake bread and baking has been relaxing for me. I now bake bread of all kinds at least once a week. I also enjoy calligraphy and scribbling.

Who or what would you consider as your greatest influences growing up?

My childhood experiences are one of my greatest influences, I many times will reflect on the circumstances around my own life or someone I grew up with and begin to dissect what resources would have made our life outcomes better, what advantages did I have, what circumstance caused pivotal changes. This I believe helps me with the work I do now. So, every time I consult with a parent, a school or even in thinking about psychosocial interventions for children. I ask myself, what would have benefitted me as a child.

What are your guiding principles?

Creativity, integrity, resilience, optimism in self and society.

What is your assessment of Nigerian families today?

Although there is still a lot of work that needs to be done around understanding and accepting child mental health in general. But I believe, there has been an increase in knowledge and attitude of Nigerian parents to child mental health.

What is your advice for those who want to go into this field?

There is so much room, we are not enough, join the train now and quickly.