Parent to Parent Programs
"We are feeling tremendous stress and worry about our child's special needs and how it is affecting our family. I'm also feeling a need to find and talk to other parents who have had the same experiences.
How can I decide what type of support from other families will work best for us? In particular, we are curious about a program called 'Parent to Parent.' Where can we find out more about this?
Topic
In this Knowledge Bank, we gradually narrow the lens from a view of getting emotional supports from professionally-led programs, to parent-led programs, to an examination specifically of Parent to Parent programs as a way to support families who are dealing with the challenges of parenting a child with special needs.
Bottom Line Action Steps
- Recognize that every family can use support once in awhile to help meet those emotional challenges. Reaching out is the first step.
- Find the support and service programs in your area where you can meet other families: parent education programs, parent-led support groups, online discussion groups, or one-to-one parent programs.
- Consider two options if you believe a one-to-one match is right for you. Try to find a connection through a personal, community, or disability-organization network. Second, try to find a Parent To Parent program in your area and obtain a match with a support parent.
- Bear in mind that the most successful one-to-one matches occur between people who have strong similarities related to their challenges and priorities, who feel they can mutually support each other.
- Become knowledgeable about policy requirements related to parent counseling. If a program is not available in your area, you can make the case that you would like for the early childhood program to provide this type of support for you.
Most Comprehensive Resource on Parent to Parent
The Parent to Parent Handbook: Connecting families of children with special needs by Santelli, Poyadue, and Young. Baltimore: Paul Brookes Publishing Co., 2001. Available online soon at www.p2pusa.org.
[Parent to Parent Knowledge Bank Experienced-based Knowledge Research Policy]