Parents and caregivers play a powerful role in supporting the behavioral health of their children. Parents Lead, an evidence-based prevention program, provides parents, caregivers and other trusted adults with tools and resources that can help support the behavioral health of their children during the holiday season.
“The upcoming school holiday break provides an excellent opportunity to re-engage in a child’s life,” said Laura Anderson, assistant director of the North Dakota Department of Human Services’ Behavioral Health Division. “This connection is essential to their development and well-being and is an important factor in preventing behavioral health issues like underage drinking, drug use, depression and anxiety.”
Parents Lead offers holiday-specific resources on how to connect with loved ones and create new family traditions that will last beyond the holiday season. There are also conversation starters to help adults talk with children about setting safe and practical expectations around holiday activities, and a calendar of fun ideas and activities people can do together to foster connectivity such as sharing a favorite holiday memory, recording a greeting to share with loved ones and creating a food basket for a neighbor in need. These resources are online at ParentsLead.org.
The Parents Lead website also has a variety of other behavioral health promotion tools and resources not only for parents, but for community members and professionals who work with children, parents and families.
The primary goal of Parents Lead is to provide parents, caregivers and trusted adults with tools and resources to support them in promoting the behavioral health and well-being of their children.
Interested individuals can follow Parents Lead on Facebook, Instagram and Pinterest.