Busting Your Child’s Summer Boredom
For parents of school-aged children, the phrase “I’m bored” can crop up in the middle of summer. Trying to fill your child’s time may add stress or anxiety to your already busy schedule. Check out these four tips on how to help bridge your child's boredom.Read More
Starting Conversations: Men’s Mental Health
June is Men’s Mental Health Month, which provides an important opportunity to shine a light on a critical issue that often goes unaddressed in today’s world, the alarming global rate of suicide among men, underscoring the urgent need for increased awareness and support for men's mental health.Read More
Creating a Safe Place for LGBTQ Youth
At Nexus Family Healing, we know that how we treat those who are different from us is incredibly important. When diversity is valued, our uniqueness is recognized, including differences in our gender identities and sexual orientation. These play an important role in everyone’s lives, and those who identify as LGBTQ face unique challenges regarding mental health.Read More
The Importance of Fathers and Their Mental Health
Research shows that fathers play a critical role in their children's lives. Strong father involvement increases academic performance, social competence, and better peer relationships. Men and fathers are not immune from their own challenges, including high rates of depression, suicide, and chemical abuse as they age. And men are far less likely to seek mental health services than women. As we strive to be good fathers and positive role models to our children, remember that what we do matters as our children look to us to determine their own sense of self.Read More
Maintaining Children’s Mental Health During Summer
When trying to work out a summer schedule that also helps maintain your child’s mental health, remember that less is often more. It’s important to find a balance between providing some structure to children’s time, but not making it so structured that they can’t properly rest and find themselves more stressed.Read More
Fostering Communication
Youth in foster care and their care providers experience many transitions. Foster parents play an important role in helping youth navigate these difficult transitions by providing stability, emotional support, and being an advocate for their needs. Take a look at how you can best support a child during an emotional time.Read More
From Paperwork to Placement
As a new foster parent who just completed mountains of paperwork and all the necessary training, you may wonder what exactly is next. Cherie Johnson, Foster and Adoptive Parent, shares her experience as a new foster parent with some action steps you and your family can take to prepare.Read More
Raising a More Resilient Child
As a parent, one of the most important things you can do is to help your child learn to deal with the inevitable challenges that life brings. Children who can successfully manage the stressors that come into their life have lower rates of mental health issues, greater levels of happiness, and often have more success later in life.Read More
Foster Care and Adoption Children’s Booklist
In honor of National Foster Care month, we wanted to share a list of books and workbooks for youth in foster care or in adopted families that are a wonderful way for children to explore other people's life experiences, while at the same time seeing their own stories represented and know they are not alone in their feelings.Read More
Family (Dys)Function: Navigating Family Dynamics in Foster and Adoptive Care
In the world of foster care, you will encounter more family dynamics than you even knew existed. This isn’t always because these families are broken, sometimes we distance ourselves from family members who have emotionally or otherwise harmed us. How do you navigate all of this? Foster and Adoptive Parent Cherie Johnson shares tips and guidance to help you navigate a variety of family dynamic situations.Read More