24/7 Helpline Provides Vital Support to Parents, Caregivers and Youth
Emotional distress and crises don’t take holidays. They don’t take the weekends off or pause for the evening after the work or school day is done. Fortunately, neither do the trained counselors at the National Parent & Youth Helpline™. Whether someone is in the midst of a personal or mental health crisis, or they just need someone to talk to, the Helpline’s counselors are ready to help, 24/7 every day of the year, via phone or text at 855-427-2736, via live chat at www.nationalparentyouthhelpline.org, and via email at [email protected].
Lisa Pion-Berlin
“Our compassionate and trained Helpline counselors provide evidence-based support for any parent, caregiver, child or youth up to age 25, even if they do not live under the same roof,” said Dr. Lisa Pion-Berlin, ACSW, ACHT, President and CEO, Parents Anonymous, which operates the Helpline. “We can help with both emotional issues and practical ones. For example, we recently counseled people living through the Los Angeles wildfires about everything from the mental anguish of losing their homes, jobs and schools, to how to find a shelter. We provide resources and referrals and encourage those reaching out to call or connect with us as often as they need to get their issue resolved.”
Importantly, however, the Helpline doesn’t simply pass callers off to outside resources and referrals. It provides immediate and evidence-based therapeutic counseling through trained staff and supporting clinicians, in up to 240 languages. All counseling, referrals, and services are provided in a culturally inclusive and responsive manner.
Over 1.5 million people have received support from the Helpline since its launch, and 85 percent of parents, children and youth who call the Helpline report feeling more positive and hopeful.
I reached out because I was scared to tell my parents about a personal issue,” said a nine-year-old girl who contacted the Helpline. “After speaking with the Helpline specialist, I felt supported and ready to have that conversation.”
“I called the Helpline after my 14-year-old daughter acted out aggressively, and I didn’t know what to do,” said a mother of two. “Talking to a specialist helped me process the situation.”
Evidence-Based Family Strengthening Program
The National Parent & Youth Helpline was born from the vision and efforts of two individuals: Jolly K., a mother yearning to create a safe and caring home for her family while living with mental health and substance abuse issues, and Leonard Lieber, a clinical social worker. As Jolly struggled to find help to address the underlying emotional issues facing her family, she sought help, support, and hope to build a community that would both strengthen her own family and organize millions of others.
With Lieber’s help, Jolly created Parents Anonymous®, a shared-leadership, evidence-based program that has helped to produce successful outcomes for millions of parents, children, and youth since 1969. According to the Federal Title IV-E Prevention Clearinghouse, Parents Anonymous is the only culturally responsive program in the nation that is proven to effectively improve parenting, enhance mental health, and reduce substance abuse while ensuring child safety for diverse families with children and youth of all ages.
The program, designed to address any personal, psychological, peer, mental health, or substance abuse concerns, has four components:
- Building Family Strengths interviews are conducted to understand the strengths and needs of each family. Based on Parents Anonymous services, parents set goals for themselves and their children to measure positive change in their family.
- Weekly two-hour online evidence-based Parents Anonymous groups are available for any parent, teen parent, kin or other caregiver. The groups follow 12 monthly themes and 16 Nurturing & Parenting strategies to enhance well-being, increase protective factors, and mitigate adverse childhood experiences. Every Parents Anonymous group is supported by a trained group facilitator and parent group leader, who help group members enhance their leadership capabilities, build a sense of belonging and community, and give back to others.
- Weekly, two-hour online evidence-based Parents Anonymous groups are available for children and youth. These groups also follow 12 monthly themes, 16 Children & Youth Nurturing strategies, and developmentally appropriate structured activities to enhance well-being, increase protective factors, and prevent adverse childhood experiences. Every Parents Anonymous children and youth group is supported by a trained children and youth group facilitator who helps members enhance their leadership capabilities, build a sense of belonging and community, and give back to others.
- Supportive services are available in between Parents Anonymous group meetings to link parent and their children and youth to additional resources and help navigate systems through peer parent and group facilitators.
“Parents’ mental health and children’s mental health are intricately linked,” Dr. Pion-Berlin said. “Families who attend Parents Anonymous groups are able to stay clean and sober longer and prevent substance abuse in their children.”
“Attending online Parents Anonymous groups has helped my husband and me reconnect with hope for our family’s future,” said a mother of five.
A Growing Awareness and Acceptance of Mental Health Issues
Dr. Pion-Berlin said that mental health issues have become a greater focus for Parents Anonymous since its founding, due in part to society’s increased awareness and acceptance of mental health issues and the importance of preventing mental health crises.
“While more people are talking about mental health these days and not making excuses for behavioral issues like ‘oh, they’ll grow out of it,’ the blame and shame are still there,” she said. “Parents and their children therefore may hesitate to share their struggles with their health care providers or school authorities. They need a safe space, such as the Helpline or our group meetings, where asking for help is encouraged and celebrated.”
Weekly Parents Anonymous group meetings help reduce the social isolation that can come from a family crisis by allowing parents to talk honestly with other parents, explore the underlying emotions that drive their or their child’s behavior, and feel acknowledged and supported in the process.
“As part of the Nurturing and Parenting Strategies we follow in our group sessions, we stress that parents need to nurture themselves before they can nurture others,” Dr. Pion-Berlin said. “Every child, youth and adult we work with in Parents Anonymous demonstrates incredible strength just by showing up and being honest about their fears and what they’re going through.”
Call or text the National Parent & Youth Helpline at 855-427-2736 24 hours a day 7 days a week or live chat at nationalparentyouthhelpline.org.
