Parenting in Difficult Situations

Parenting is hard enough in the best of times, but when life's challenges - incarceration, addiction, separation/divorce, domestic violence - add to the stress, parenting can seem overwhelming. Here are some tips for getting through life's tough situations:

When Child Welfare is involved with your family:

• Information for fathers on how to regain custody of children after placement in foster care.
• Parenting from A Distance (Spanish Version) Here are some tips for parents whose children are in foster care placement.
• Do's and Don'ts Do's and Don'ts for Parents with Child Welfare Involvement - Here are some general tips for cooperating with your county Children and Youth office.

When a Parent is incarcerated:

• Parenting from the Inside You can maintain your relationship with your child while you are incarcerated; here’s how.
• When a parent is an inmate When a parent is incarcerated, children have many different emotions. Here is some general information on how incarceration impacts children.
• Ideas for Separated Families Incarcerated parents can find creative ways to stay in contact with their children. Here are some ideas.
• Corrections Today article PFSA’s partnership with the Dept of Corrections Bureau of Community Corrections led to a feature article in the December issue of Corrections Today magazine. Read about our work with recently released parents in Corrections Today.
• Parenting in Prison Incarcerated parents with children in foster care face many challenges to stay connected. Parents in prison write about their experiences in “Rise,” a magazine by and for parents in the child welfare system.
• Children of Incarcerated Bill of Rights Children of incarcerated parents have a right to a relationship with their parent, even if he/she is incarcerated. Here’s a “bill of rights” for incarcerated parents.

Separated / Divorced Parents:

• Ten Tips for Stepfamilies Blending families is not easy, and here are a few thoughts to get you started.
• What to do when they say "Where's Daddy?" If your children have no contact with their other parent, here are some ways to explain it to them.
• Co-Parenting Together (Spanish Version) There’s no such thing as an ex-parent. Putting your child first in separation or divorce is not easy but very important.

Recovering Families:

• Information for caregivers Caring for a chidl whose parents are addicted can be overwhelming.  Here is some information to help both child and caregiver cope.
• Parenting One Day at a Time (Spanish Version) Parents in recovery often have a lot of guilt and shame over their parenting. Here are some tips for coping.
•  Helping Children Understand Mental Illness Some tips from the Mental Health Association of Southeast Pennsylvania on how to talk with children about a parent's mental illness.
• Dear Friend What a chemical addition might say if it could write a letter to an addict.
• If You Used Drugs Information from the Partnship for a Drug-Free America on talking to your children about your own drug use.
• Recovering Family Sample Pages Sample a few pages from PFSA's new cirriculum for parents in recovery from chemical addiction.
• Parenting with Hope and Health It's possible to be a good parent with a mental illness.  Here are some tips for success.
• Children of Addicted Parents A fact sheet from the National Association of Children of Alcoholics.

Other challenging situations:   

• Parenting When There is Domestic Violence (Spanish Version) Keeping children safe is the first priority of any parent.
• Children's Reactions to Domestic Violence Children react to violence in many ways, and behave differently according to their age.
• Families in Tough Economic Times The economy impacts children too. Here are some ways to talk with your children about tough economic times.
• Coping with Grief and Loss Reactions to grief and loss vary, and recovery from loss can take a long time.