When you have a teen or adult child with mental illness or addiction, acceptance can help bring more peace. Acceptance doesn’t mean you need to agree with all of your child’s decisions or like what is happening.  Acceptance involves acknowledging the facts of the situation and not focusing your energy on why it shouldn’t be…

When you have a child with mental illness or addiction, it may feel like your entire world has been turned upside down.  Life is different now than it was prior to their illness and addiction.  They may seem like a different person. You may have a different relationship with them. You probably have different thoughts and struggles.  They…

As a parent, we feel like it is our job to fix everything for our child.  While some things we can fix, others we can’t.  If they have a mental illness or addiction, we may feel guilty because we are not able to fix it. No matter how hard we try, we can’t make them to…

I feel blessed for the opportunity to have been interviewed on 2 TV networks today!  It was a beautiful experience and I appreciated the opportunity to share my story to help others who are coping with the loss of a child on Mother’s Day or with having a child with mental illness and addiction. Spending the…

I feel blessed for the opportunity to have been interviewed on 2 TV networks today!  It was a beautiful experience and I appreciated the opportunity to share my story to help others who are coping with the loss of a child on Mother’s Day or with having a child with mental illness and addiction. Spending the…

Mother’s Day is right around the corner. Whether you are grieving the loss of your child or grieving due to having a child with mental illness and/or addiction, this can be a difficult time filled with pain, sadness, unpredictability, stress, uncertainty. How can you get through this day?  Here are some things I have found helpful…

I’m so excited to announce that on Saturday May 18 I will be doing a book signing event at the Barnes and Noble in Fredericksburg, VA for my book Finding and Purpose Amidst the Tears: My Journey of the Love and Loss of My Son through His Mental Illness and Addiction.  If you are in the…

Anger may be one of those emotions you don’t want to feel.  Maybe you are trying to suppress it because you feel you should not feel angry or that others are judging you for your anger. If you have a child with mental illness or addiction, you may feel angry at your child for their behavior,…

Last night I had a great conversation on my show.  One thing we discussed is that you are not your pain, that this is not your identity.   When you are a parent of a teen or adult child with mental illness or addiction, this is so important to remember in regard to yourself and your child.…

Judgment of ourselves can be something we do without even realizing it. It can come in the form of judging our feelings.  For example, you feel angry years after your child was diagnosed with mental illness or became addicted to drugs and you are judging your feelings in that you think you should no longer be…