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What Helped Me

Welcome to the Adult Interpretation Guide

A gentle guide for noticing, understanding, and responding with care.

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This guide is here to gently support your understanding of the choices a child might make in the What Helped Me toolkit. Each category reflects different kinds of comfort, movement, space, or connection. You don’t need to interpret perfectly — just notice, reflect, and respond with warmth.

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This guide is here to support you, not to judge or correct.

Choose a category below to explore at your own pace.

Fidget Toy. Illustration of a fidget spinner, symbolising a need for tactile focus or emotional release.

Fidget Toy

This may show a need for something to touch, something to focus on, or emotional release.

Supportive response: Provide a fidget tool and let the child use it freely. No need to ask why — the choice speaks for itself.

I Want My Blanket. Child wrapped in a soft blanket with comfort lines, expressing a need for warmth, protection, or retreat.

I Want My Blanket

This may express a need for warmth, protection, or retreat.

Supportive response: Offer a blanket or soft wrap. Sit nearby quietly if invited, and allow space to settle.

Chew Necklace. Child wearing a chewable necklace, representing oral sensory input and self-soothing.

Chew Necklace

This may signal a need for oral sensory input, grounding, or self-soothing.

Supportive response: Offer a chew necklace or safe oral item. Avoid framing it as a bad habit — it’s a valid regulation strategy.

Soft Clothes. Smiling shirt icon, indicating a preference for soft, comfortable clothing that feels emotionally safe.

Soft Clothes

This may show a need for comfort, reduced sensory irritation, or emotional safety.

Supportive response: Honour clothing preferences. Avoid forcing uncomfortable textures or uniforms — comfort matters.

Swing. Child sitting on a swing, representing rhythmic motion and a need for sensory regulation or emotional release.

Swing

This might be their way of showing they need some gentle movement or a bit of release.

Supportive response: offering a swing or another calm, swaying activity — and letting them enjoy it without needing to explain anything.

Stretch. Child stretching with one arm raised, symbolising body awareness, tension release, or a need to reconnect physically.

Stretch

This may show a need to release tension, reconnect with the body, or feel more in control.

Supportive response: Model gentle stretching or invite the child to stretch in their own way. Avoid correcting form — it’s about feeling, not performance.

Dance. Child dancing with musical notes around them, expressing joy, energy, or a need for emotional expression through movement.

Dance

This may show a need for expressive movement, joy, or sensory stimulation.

Supportive response: Join in if invited, or offer music with a beat. Let the child move freely and celebrate their rhythm.

Rocking Chair. Child sitting in a rocking chair, reflecting a need for soothing, repetitive motion and gentle self-regulation.

Rocking Chair

This may express a need for soothing, repetitive motion, or quiet regulation.

Supportive response: Provide access to a rocking chair or similar movement. Sit nearby if invited, and allow space for quiet settling.

I Want Quiet. Child with a finger to their lips, expressing a need for silence, reduced stimulation, or emotional space.

I Want Quiet

This may reflect a need for auditory regulation, emotional space, or sensory retreat.

Supportive response: Reduce noise, dim lights, and offer a quiet corner. Honour the need for silence without asking questions or requiring interaction.

Listen Music. Child wearing headphones with musical notes, showing a need for calming input, rhythm, or emotional regulation through sound.

Listen To Music

This may show a need for something comforting to listen to, or a gentle distraction.

Supportive response: Offer some soft music or let them pick a familiar song, and giving them space to listen however feels right for them.

Deep Breaths. Child with a hand on their chest and breath lines, representing a need for grounding, self-regulation, or emotional recovery.

Deep Breaths

This may express a need for grounding, emotional regulation, or body awareness.

Supportive response: Model slow, gentle breathing or invite the child to breathe with you. Use visual cues like hand tracing or soft prompts, and let the pace be theirs.

I Want to Be Alone. Child sitting curled up, expressing a need for solitude, emotional safety, or time to settle without interaction.

I Want To Be Alone

This may reflect a need for solitude, emotional safety, or quiet processing.

Supportive response: Respect the child’s request for space. Let them know you’re nearby and available, but allow them to be alone without pressure or concern.

Talk. Two speech bubbles, representing a need for connection, expression, or being heard through conversation.

Talk

This may reflect a need for verbal connection, reassurance, or emotional sharing.

Supportive response: Offer space to talk, but don’t push for explanations. Listen gently and validate feelings.

Hug. Two figures embracing, expressing a need for closeness, comfort, or emotional reassurance through physical touch.

Hug

This may signal a need for physical comfort, safety, or emotional closeness.

Supportive response: Offer a hug if invited. Respect boundaries and let the child lead the level of contact.

Sit Close. Two figures sitting side by side, showing a need for quiet companionship, presence, or gentle support.

Sit Close

This may show a need for proximity, co-regulation, or quiet presence.

Supportive response: Sit nearby without needing to talk. Your presence alone can be calming and affirming.

Hold My Hand. Two hands holding each other, symbolising a need for safety, trust, or emotional grounding through touch.

Hold My Hand

This may express a need for gentle touch, grounding, or emotional safety.

Supportive response: Offer your hand softly. Let the child hold it in their own way — it’s about connection, not control.

“Feeling safe and understood helps every child feel better.” ❤️

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