Molly Potter on Positive Mental Health

Molly Potter started out as a scientist but soon realised that chemistry did not have abundant opportunities for working with people and they were what really interested her – so she jumped ship and trained as a primary school teacher, subsequently working with children and adults in education in a variety of guises for many years.

Molly is also a best-selling and prolific (36 books and counting!) author, writing on a range of subjects – from creative thinking, problem solving and personal, social and health education (PSHE) for teachers to picture books that help young children with tricky emotions and situations.

Molly has shared her wisdom on BBC Radio 4, BBC Radios Scotland, London, Norfolk and Radio 5 live. She is also qualified as an NLP and hypnotherapy practitioner and holds a certificate in person-centred counselling skills.

In this session, Molly Potter discusses promoting positive mental health in children and adults, looking at why anxiety and low mood are becoming more common and what practitioners and families can do to help build resilience from an early age. Molly shares the thinking behind her top tips sessions for children, along with practical language and strategies you can use with little ones and their grown-ups.

In this episode you’ll:

• Discover why our brains are wired for survival rather than happiness, and what that means for wellbeing
• Learn Molly’s “pivot point” and “monorail” idea for helping children manage strong emotions
• Find out how gratitude and reframing can genuinely reshape a child’s outlook over time
• Explore why comfort zones matter and how stepping outside them builds resilience
• Hear Molly’s honest take on talking to children about taboo subjects, including death and consent

Watch now to hear Molly’s practical top tips for supporting children’s mental health, drawn from decades of working with children and families.

Episode Links:

https://www.bloomsbury.com/uk/author/molly-potter

https://www.bloomsbury.com/uk/who-will-you-be-when-you-grow-up-9781801993494

https://amzn.to/4tYopXB

https://www.mollypotter.com

https://digital.nhs.uk/data-and-information/publications/statistical/adult-psychiatric-morbidity-survey/survey-of-mental-health-and-wellbeing-england-2023-24