Mental health issues are a recurrent theme in many storylines in the Dumping Ground. 1 in 8 children in UK have a mental health disorder, so it is incredibly important that mental health issues are discussed and explored in children's tv.
In series 1 we learn that Tyler's mum has bipolar disorder and Tyler was taken into care because his mum was too unwell to look after him. It is also revealed that Tyler fears that he will get bipolar disorder as well as it can sometimes be inherited. He believes that he is starting to go mad as he keeps hearing a dripping noise, fearing that he developing the same mental illness as his mum he breaks into the office to read his file to find out more about her condition. Tyler later finds out that the source of the dripping is a leak in the attic above his room and he is not going mad at all. In series 2 Tyler is shown to have an unhealthy relationship with food. He believes he is fat due to some hurtful comments made by Bailey so he decides to go on a calorie restricted diet. May-li helps him see that he is fine the way he is and shouldn't try and change because of someone else. Later in series 2 Tyler's mum Sally comes to visit him but it soon transpires that she has not been taking her medication and her behaviour starts to become very erratic. Sally tries to convince Tyler that they can hide her continuing mental health problems from Mike and May-li but Tyler makes her realise she still needs professional help and he will wait for her to get better. It is also revealed that when Tyler lived at home his mum would describe how good or bad she was feeling on a scale of numbers with one being worst and 10 really good. In the Dumping Ground Island special Tyler is overwhelmed by the pressures of school, his role as forum rep and creating his podcast as well as his fear of becoming mentally ill and his growing feelings for Jody. He retreats to his imaginary desert island where he has to learn to face his fears and he realises his deepest fear isn't becoming mentally ill, its losing Jody. In series 6 Tyler learns that his mum has a new boyfriend, Tyler is overprotective fearing that the new boyfriend is just taking advantage of his vulnerable mum and he persuades his mum to end the relationship, only to realise afterwards that the boyfriend is genuine and was going to propose to Sally. Sally's mental health issues and Tyler's fear of becoming mentally ill are a recurring theme and highlight that is ok to not be ok and to ask for help and that parents can go through mental health struggles too.
Jody's mental health has also been a recurrent theme in The Dumping Ground. She is scared of her brother Kingsley and retreats into Wonderland when faced with the decision of whether to testify at his trial. In Series 2 Experience Jody is shown to have very low self esteem and doesn't like being the centre of attention as this was always a negative experience when she lived at home as she was made to feel stupid. This is explored further in Series 4 episode 3 when she suffers from low self esteem and panic attacks when faced with having to dance in front of an audience. Her self esteem issues stem from her mum never telling her she was good at anything, and her brothers always taking the mick out of her if she got something wrong. This has led her to be a perfectionist and fear failure. Tyler reassures Jody and helps improve her self esteem by getting her to watch a video of herself dancing to see how good she is. In series 5 she worries that the rest of the house are laughing at her and Tyler, when they reveal they see Jody and Tyler as a couple. Jody goes to great lengths to make them thinking otherwise encouraging Tyler to ask out a girl at the skate park. In series 6 Jody is shown to have anger issues caused by her mum making her pretend to live at home so that her boyfriend Grant wouldn't find out about her past. Her mum pressuring her to spend time at home and having to lie to Mike, May-li and the DG kids about what she is up to leads to angry outbursts. May-li introduces her to boxing as a way to channel her aggression and pent up frustrations. Later in series 6 she is asked out by her boxing partner Brandon, due to her low self esteem she cant understand why he likes her, especially as he doesn't know her well like Tyler. She also has feelings for Tyler, so doesn't know how to react to Brandon. As her relationship with Brandon becomes more serious she realises that she cant ignore her feelings for Tyler and is determined to find out if he feels the same. Her low self-esteem and Tyler's reluctance to reveal his feelings leads Jody to believe that Tyler doesn't care about her, but after locking herself and Tyler in the attic Tyler eventually admits how he feels. In series 7 Jody takes her boxing training to the extreme in an effort to make the regional team. She trains really hard without eating enough, runs to the gym and drinks protein shakes. Due to the excessive exercise and not eating properly she faints. She reveals that she was training so hard because she wants to be good at something and be someone rather than a waste of space like her mum and brother. Jody's self esteems issues really demonstrate how we are our own harshest critics and it is important to look after yourself and not worry about what other people may think or be too hard on yourself.
Sasha Bellman is another character shown to have anger issues. When she first arrives at the Dumping Ground Sasha smashes the minibus headlights to prevent the rest of the DG kids going to beach because she is not allowed to go. In Series 6 Episode 5 Sasha is getting ready to leave the DG and move back with her mum but at the last minute she breaks down realising that the Dumping Ground is her real home and that its not right for her to move back to her mums. In the Dumping Ground's spin off webisode series Sasha's Contact Meeting, Sasha has a meeting with her new social worker and at first tries to avoid talking to her as she doesn't want to think about her future or discuss her feelings. Eventually she breakdowns when faced with decisions about her future. She fears failure, fears that her anger messes everything up and feels guilty for not moving back in with her mum, even though she knows it was the right decision. The message of the webisode series was that its important to talk to someone about how you feel, rather than bottle up your feelings. A really important message to get across to young people who may be suffering with mental health issues.
Charlie Morris is shown to struggle with her mental health when her grandfather reveals he is terminally ill. She refuses to except what he says and it takes a while for the news to sink in. She says she is not ready for him to pass away and he reminds her that no matter what she will always be loved. In series 6 episode 23 it is revealed that Charlie's grandfather has passed away. Charlie is distraught and when May-li goes into labour struggles to help as she is consumed by grief. May-li helps Charlie see that her grandad is still with her in spirit and is a part of her. On returning to the Dumping Ground Mike gives Charlie a motivational letter that her grandad wrote to her to read after he passed away. In series 7 we see Charlie trying to keep busy to help take her mind off her grief and find out that she has inherited her grandfathers house. This storyline is the most deeply explored bereavement storyline in the Tracy Beaker franchise. Previously in TSOTB and TBR there were storylines surrounding the death of Jackie's grandfather and Frank's grandad but they were mainly handled in one episode, with relatively little mention afterwards. There were also subplots in earlier TDG series that mentioned the death of Archie's father and the twins' mother but these were not explored in depth. There is much more raw emotion shown in Charlie's storyline and it deals with the whole bereavement process from finding out a loved one is dying, the reaction after the death itself and the aftermath as she learns to carry on.
It is so important that children that have mental health issues see similar experiences on tv, it provides a vehicle to discuss difficult issues and helps them feel less isolated by their experiences. It also helps children who don't have personal experience of mental health issues to empathise with those that do.
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