KFF Health News (8/14, Rayasam) reports, “A national shortage of mental” healthcare clinicians, “and the search for affordable care, has exacerbated strain on parents, often the primary caregivers who maintain the health and well-being of their children,” a “day-to-day struggle” that “has led to its own health crisis, say psychologists, researchers, and advocates for families.” Even “as parents navigate the mental health care system’s shortcomings, stress can start to take a physical and mental health toll that disrupts their ability to continue providing care, said Christine Crawford, the associate medical director at the National Alliance on Mental Illness, an advocacy group that helps families find care.” Parents focus their energies into helping their children, “often at the expense of their own health, Crawford said.”
Related Links:
— “Parents See Own Health Spiral as Their Kids’ Mental Illnesses Worsen,”Renuka Rayasam, KFF Health News, August 14, 2023