When parents identify and communicate what worries them most, there is an opportunity to offer some coping strategies and resources to begin to deal with the stress. Parents are not always aware how their ability to cope with stress may impact their capacity to parent and their children’s development. You can help parents recognize that they can model coping behaviors for their children, since children observe and imitate parents in many ways. Empowering parents to seek help and take steps to combat stress is part of building both resilience and hope.
Some needs are obvious to all family members and to providers. Other needs, such as marital counseling or substance abuse treatment, may become apparent when one family member expresses concern about another. Partnering with the family includes helping all family members translate their concerns into specific needs that can be discussed and resolved. Many community resources and services are available to help families cope. Faith communities, community colleges, self-help groups, and social service agencies can help parents and caregivers develop problem-solving and communication skills that strengthen their ability to deal effectively with crisis, so they can continue to provide for their children.
Resources for building resilience may include information about:
Stress—causes and results
• How stress happens, including the “little things” that add up
• Ways to recognize stress and its triggers
• How stress affects health and coping
• How stress affects parenting, marriage, and family life
Finding ways to build resilience
• Stress management techniques, such as regular exercise, relaxation to music, and meditation or prayer
• How to prevent stress by planning ahead, anticipating difficulties, and having resources in place
• How to anticipate and minimize everyday stress
• How to handle major stressors, including accessing resources and supports from family, friends, faith communities, and other community resources
• Family management techniques, such as effective ways of communicating needs and concerns
• Programs that offer family-to-family help or mentoring for personalized, intensive, sustained services or support, especially in times of crisis
• Community supports such as mental health and counseling services, substance abuse treatment, domestic violence programs, and self-help support groups
• Concrete skill building in areas such as problem solving, goal setting, communication, and self-care
Authors: Child Welfare Information Gateway, Children’s Bureau, FRIENDS National Resource Center for Community-Based Child Abuse Prevention
Tags: advice, Children, parental resilience, Parenting, parents
