As parents and caretakers, we overlook the fact that we need help to succeed sometimes too. After all, once our kids came around, their needs took precedence and our primary purpose became to help them succeed. However, the truth is that as parents we need help at times. Just because we are now parents does not mean we have to submit to a belief that we are not deserving of help and guidance. This is especially true when it comes to dealing with a child who is struggling with issues of mental health, and this is where engaging with a parent coach can become an exceptional option for recovery.
Sometimes parents feel that reaching out and asking for help is some type of failure or weakness. This couldn’t be further from the truth. One of the strongest things a person can do is advocate for themselves and their family. This is what engaging with a parent coach is. Besides, utilizing a parent coach is not giving up authority and letting someone else do the work. It is getting a second perspective on how to improve what you’re already doing and eliminating that which is not helping you succeed.
Galileo once said, “We cannot teach people anything; we can only help them discover it within themselves.” This is the essence of working with a parent coach. A parent coach can help instill in us the tools and techniques we need to help us through the difficult journey of a child’s mental health struggles. We already have what we need in us. Sometimes we just need a little guidance to help us draw upon it.
What Exactly Is a Parent Coach?
A parent coach is someone who coaches parents in a specialized way. There are parent coaches who work in many different fields. For instance, some parent coaches help a family manage death and physical illness. Then there are parent coaches who help with integrating new members into a family. There are also parent coaches who help parents deal with children who are struggling with drinking, self-medication and mental illness. These are the parent coaches that are pertinent to this discussion.
A parent coach who works with families affected by issues of mental health is trained in the psychological impact these issues can have on a family. These coaches are available to answer questions that arise regarding a child’s mental health. As well, they can offer advice and exercises on how to handle and cope with a child’s mental health struggles.
Ultimately, a parent coach can be a great asset because they can make us feel less alone at a time when we can feel overwhelmed and out of sorts. They can help prop us up when we are feeling down, and it’s hard to underestimate the value of that kind of support.
What Are the Benefits of Working With a Parent Coach?
Numerous benefits can be gained by working with a parent coach. Not all of them are the obvious ones you might expect. Some of the benefits of working with a parent coach include, but are not limited to:
- Gaining support when a child pushes back regarding a recovery plan or treatment
- Advice when it comes to setting boundaries for a child who is struggling with issues of mental illness or drinking, self-medication.
- Creating a bridge between parents and children who are having trouble communicating
- Offering techniques and exercises that can help rebuild a parent/child relationship
- Helping connect parents with other recovery options that may be needed (this may include recovery centers, therapists, or even local recovery communities such as 12-Step groups)
- Offering support to the entire family, not just the parents and the specific child who is struggling
Healing the Entire Family for Long-Term Recovery
It is important to remember that life-controlling issues and mental illness are “diseases” and not “choices.” As well, it’s good to remember that that disease does not just affect the individual but it affects an entire family. This is why many people in 12-Step recovery and 12-Step family recovery call life-controlling issues a “family disease.” The only way to treat a “family disease” is with a “family solution.”
A parent coach can help with this necessary family healing. They can offer tips, techniques, and exercises that can get the family back on the same page. Then they can also help get the family back to where they were before the strain of mental illness began to take its toll.
Sometimes as parents, we feel like we are no longer in a position to ask for help. After all, we’re the ones who others are relying on now. We are here to tell you that you have every right to get the help you need. You deserve some peace and healing too.
It is important to remember that self-medicating and mental illness are “family diseases.” Because of this fact, it is important that the entire family gets the recovery help that they need. One of the ways that this family recovery can be achieved is through the use of a parent coach. A parent coach can help parents better achieve how they want to communicate with their child in recovery. A parent coach can also help establish the kind of relationship they want to continue having with their child after they leave a recovery center. For more information on how a parent coach can help with family recovery, please reach out to Clearview Girls Academy today at (888) 796-5484.
