The impact of substance use, mental illness, and trauma on parenting, the parent-child relationship, and children can be devastating. Parents may experience loss of self-image as capable, effective parents. They may have a diminished capacity for empathy for periods of time. In addition, the parent-child bond may be weakened by periods of physical and/or emotional unavailability of parents and the resulting gaps in parents’ knowledge of the experiences, milestone, and growth of their children. It is hoped that participation in the SUD program can be both the beginning of restoring what has been lost in the parent-child relationship and a time for parents to re-establish the strength of their connections to their children so that parents and children can heal together.
