Mental illness and/or substance use disorders in parents are among the greatest—yet least visible—stresses faced by children and adolescents. Nationwide, approximately 3.8 million children and adolescents are growing up with a parent who has a mental illness and/or a substance use disorder. That amounts to about one in four young people. Applied to Mainz, this could mean that up to 9,000 children are affected. 

“Children with parents who have mental health issues and/or substance use disorders need special attention and early support. They often bear a significant burden and face a substantially higher risk of developing mental health issues themselves. This makes low-threshold support, an understanding environment, and strong networking and collaboration among professionals all the more important,” emphasizes Jana Schmöller, Director of Social Affairs, Children, Youth, and Health. 

The annual network conference brings together professionals from child and youth welfare, healthcare, schools, counseling centers, social services, the police, and other institutions that work with children, youth, and families. The goal is to deepen understanding of the specific needs of affected families, raise awareness of available support services, and further strengthen collaboration among stakeholders. 

Following opening remarks by Miriam Wolf, Team Leader of the Early Intervention, Child Protection, and Family Education Unit, and Patrik Maniel, Head of the Department of General Social Services and Special Social Services at the Office for Youth and Family of the State Capital of Mainz, a presentation by Dr. Michael Hipp, a specialist in neurology, psychiatry, and psychotherapy, set the professional focus. He examined the effects of parents’ mental health and substance use disorders on children’s development, as well as opportunities for early, family-centered prevention and trauma-informed support for parents provided by professionals. He emphasized that reflective professionals can serve as “safety officers” for affected parents, providing them with the care they may have lacked in their own childhoods.

A parent’s mental illness or addiction can represent a serious, long-term source of stress not only for the parents themselves but especially for the affected children and adolescents. A parent’s illness is often associated with many challenges and tensions, both within the family and in the social environment. Statistically speaking, affected children are more frequently at risk of child welfare concerns and have a three- to four-fold increased risk of developing a mental illness themselves over the course of their lives. To prevent this, it is important to provide timely support, relief, and protection for these children and their families. These children and their parents are particularly dependent on a stigma-sensitive, supportive social environment and on needs-based, qualified help and care. To improve the situation for these children and their parents, coordinated, accessible, and networked support services for the entire family are necessary. Parents living with mental illness should not be afraid to seek support but should know that help is available for them and their children.

In the afternoon, a total of 16 organizations and service providers presented their services for families, children, and adolescents at the “Market of Opportunities” during the network conference. Participants received a comprehensive overview of existing support services in Mainz and were able to network across disciplines. 

The City of Mainz provides annual funding of 29,791 euros—with the help of state funds under the State Child Protection Act—to support a targeted program for children with parents suffering from mental illness and/or addiction.  In cooperation with the “Zebra” counseling service, the group “Strong Children in Challenging Life Situations,” run by SBB Sozialtherapeutische Beratungsstelle Mainz gGmbH, offers affected children aged 7 to 12 a safe space once a week to foster their personal resilience, strengthen their self-efficacy, and relieve them of feelings of responsibility toward their affected parents. 

The Center for Early Intervention, Child Protection, and Family Education develops programs for families through interdisciplinary collaboration, coordinates various networks, plans professional events, and offers counseling on child protection. 

Participants 

Professionals from the following fields participated: 

• public and private child and youth welfare services (General Social Services, Integration Assistance, Foster Care Services, daycare centers, daycare social work, school social work, parenting counseling centers, outpatient and inpatient child and youth welfare services, family education providers)
• Healthcare, including family midwives, pediatric nurses, psychiatric outpatient clinics, social services at the University Medical Center, and child and adolescent psychotherapists
• Early Intervention
• Prenatal counseling
• Integration Assistance
• Schools
• Police
• Facilities for protection against violence in close social relationships
• Family education centers and family support centers
• Drug Assistance and Addiction Prevention
• Employment Agency (Family Benefits Office)
• Public Health Department
• Social Services
• State Association of Relatives of People with Mental Illness in Rhineland-Palatinate, Inc.
• Whisper Post
• Shadow & Light, Inc.
• Mütterpflege Deutschland e. V.
• BINE, Specialized Counseling Center on “Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder” (FASD) for Rhineland-Palatinate and the Saarland