There have been times when my children have struggled and I have no idea what to do. And even when I am given information by a doctor, a therapist or a teacher, I have no way of knowing what path I should follow, what strategy I should use, what support I should give to help my child. Sometimes it’s that the information is overwhelming. Sometimes it’s that the information doesn’t seem to fit with my child’s situation. Sometimes I’m just so sad/frustrated/angry/confused – choose the word that you can relate to – that I can’t think straight.

I hear this from parents and caregivers on a regular basis. And for parents and caregivers that need advice and guidance from the mental health system, it’s even more challenging because the fact that they are at that door with their children usually means there’s a crisis. And figuring out the what, when, where, how in a crisis is a task that almost feels impossible.

But here’s the good news. Because Kinark has been talking to parents and working with parents, we are poised on the verge of trying something new and something that will help families figure it out. We heard consistently from parents and caregivers the following two things: that they wish someone had been there to help them when they entered the mental health system and that, now that they “get it,” they want to give back and make sure that other parents don’t have to go through the confusion, frustration and fear that they experienced.

Over the next few months, Kinark and Parents for Children’s Mental Health ( http://www.pcmh.ca) will set out to discover the best way to bring the expertise of parents and caregivers that have gone through the system into the system to help other families. We want to find out how to create a parent support model that will help others as they enter the mental health system and need to know how to navigate that system as well as deal with the education, youth justice and/or foster care systems.

The first steps are to look at what others have done that works and to talk to parents about what is needed. Kinark and PCMH will draw on the expertise of parents, clinicians and researchers to develop something that will work for families. We are excited as we embark on this partnership with PCMH and know that it will lead to a better understanding about how to get help and support the great work that our frontline staff do every day.