• housing,
• employment,
• money management,
• transportation,
• childcare, and more.

They also face challenges specific to their illness:

• medication,
• hospitalization,
• relationships with helpers,
• and stigma, including the belief that people with mental illness should not have or raise children.

Families in which a parent has a mental illness or co-occurring disorders often have unmet service needs that can lead to family instability and disruption. Service systems may view adults with mental illness or co-occurring disorders in complete isolation of their children, and thus are not providing comprehensive, integrated services that could enhance family stability and self-determination. To service providers, the children of parents with mental illness or co-occurring disorders are often "invisible."

Invisible Children

• Project Overview
• Project Information
• Project Sites
• Resources
• Services
• Outcomes

Strengthening Families Fact Sheets

• Recognizing Postpartum Depression*
• Positive Parenting*
• Effective Discipline Techniques for Parents: Alternatives to Spanking*
• Issues And Challenges*
• Child Custody Issues*
• From Risk To Resiliency: Protective Factors For Children*
• Serious Mental Illness And Parenting*
• Interventions And Services For Families*
• The Invisible Children's Project: An Example Of A Promising Program*
• Steps Toward Evidence-Based Practices for Parents with Mental Illness and their Families*
• The Invisible Children's Project: A Family-Centered Intervention for Parents with Mental Illness*
• Critical Issues for Parents with Mental Illness and their Families*
• Resource List: Funding the Invisible Children's Project*

*Adobe Acrobat required

(c) 2005 National Mental Health Association. All rights reserved.