Building Children's Resilience in the Face of Parental Mental Illness

Mental illness in a parent presents children with multiple challenges, including stigma, self-doubt and self-blame, ongoing anxiety and depression, that are rarely discussed in the public domain. This important new book, written by young people who have lived through these experiences, as well as professionals working alongside their families, highlights the relationships between children, parents and professionals, and the emotional issues they all face. A key focus of the book is the relationships in all combinations between the children, parents and professionals, as well as the responses to each other illustrated throughout. It will be ideal for all those working in the health, social and educational professions, as well as parents and children themselves.

Alan Cooklin has worked as a family therapist, psychiatrist, and child and adolescent psychiatrist for some 45 years. For the past 20 years he has developed the multi-family Kidstime Workshops for the children of parents with mental illness and their families, and in 2012 established the charity (The Kidstime Foundation, later Our Time) to disseminate this approach. He has published widely. Gill Gorell Barnes has been a family therapist, published researcher, and university lecturer for over 35 years, as well as working as expert witness in the family courts for 15 years. Her focus on children in families afflicted by parental mental illness and other sources of extreme behaviour includes all varieties of family life. She has published widely.

Forewords by Alastair Campbell and Professor Kim Foster; Introduction; 1. Mental Health, Mental Illness, the Family, and Others: How Do We Think About Them Together? (Alan Cooklin); 2. Parental Commentary on Chapter 1 (Lara Brown); 3. Comment by Juliet Brown (Lara's Daughter) on Lara Brown's Commentary (Juliet Brown); 4. Parental Mental Illness: The Worst Hurdles and what Helped (Kirsty Tahta-Wraith); 5. From Child of a Parent with Mental Illness to Becoming a Therapist: What Made a Difference Along the Route (Chineye Njoku); 6. Commentary on a Young Adult's Chapter (Lou Ryan); 7. Breaking Out of the Trap of Constricting Loyalty (Georgia Irwin-Ryan); 8. Parental Mental Illness and Extra Difficulties for Children When Parents Divorce (Gill Gorell Barnes); 9. Notes from The Edge: Supporting Parents with Mental Health Problems (Leonard Fagin); 10. Storytelling and Drama: Telling Our Stories, Building Resilience - Drama Processes and Techniques for Empowerment (Deni Francis); 11. The Journey from Young Carer to Doctor: Reflections on How the Two Roles Informed Each Other (Suhaib Debar); 12. Keeping It Together: Championing Young Carers' Rights and Raising Family And Public Awareness (Ambeya Begum); 13. Parental Comment on Ambeya Begum and Georgia Irwin-Ryan's Chapters (Lara Brown); 14. Not a Framework, but a Way to Be: Reflections of a School Nurse (Jessica Streeting); 15. School-Based Support for Young People Affected by Parental Mental Illness (Anita Frier); 16. London Calling - Experiences with the Kidstime Model in Germany (Klaus Henner Spierling); 17. Kidstime Experience in Spain (Miguel Cárdenas); 18. Some Combined Tips for Parents, Children, and the Professionals Who Work with Them