Conversations about mental illness have come a long way from the days when adjectives such as unmentionable, secretive, and shameful inaccurately described the issue at hand. That said, there are still miles to travel before mental illness is received with complete transparency. That’s the bad news.

 

The good news is that in the year 2022, mental illness is more respected and recognized as a serious health factor to be addressed. Thankfully today, mental health continues to grow as a largely accepted societal enormity in dire need of supportive measures, funding, research, and treatments.

 

For parents of children who are mentally ill, it isn’t unusual for overwhelming feelings to occur. Therefore, it is crucial for parents to gain access to professional resources of support, guidance, and understanding without shame.

 

First Things First

While children with mental illness command constant care, a parent’s self-care is of the highest priority. Caregiving is a demanding job both mentally and physically, especially when mental illness cannot offer any reprieve for the child or the parent. Setting personal boundaries can help:

 

– Determine the simplest forms of preferred self-care, such as peer support, music, hydration, healthy snacks, and exercise regimes that can be included even for brief moments throughout the day.

 

– Prioritize those self-care routines for all family members throughout the day, every day. Fight strong urges to ignore self-care. Self-care must become a strong habit for everyone in the home. Involving all reliable members within the family will assist with the threat of becoming consumed by ongoing responsibilities.

 

National Alliance for Mental Illness (NAMI)

This multi-dimensional resource offers a plethora of mental health information. Teachings about mental health illness, types of mental illness, treatments, public awareness topics, family support, and therapies are the spearheading answers families require to live with optimism and strength surrounding such delicate mental health details.

 

Online and in-person navigation options through NAMI Basics OnDemand offer hope and clarity about mental illness in families and surrounding neighborhoods. Because each family’s mental health needs are unique, NAMI is a primary resource defending the mental health needs of families all over the world.

 

Need more? Please do not hesitate to contact NAMI or a mental health provider for more answers about mental health.