We offer peer-to-peer support for parents whose teens and young adults are dealing with mental health issues. Attend one of our three monthly virtual meetings and discover a caring and comforting community.
Upcoming Support Groups
Parents of Teens and Tweens
Monthly Parent Support Groups
​​Saturdays: 2:00PM - 4:00PM (Virtual)​
Next Meeting Dates (click dates to register):
Apr 11 May 3 (in-person) May 9
Parents of Older Teens and Young Adults (18 to 38 years)
Monthly Parent Support Groups
Tuesdays: 7:00PM - 9:00PM (Virtual)
Next Meeting Dates (click date to register):
We usually suggest a $10 donation for Family Sanity Meetings to help cover our administrative costs. Please contact founder Lisa Scimens to request financial assistance lisascimens@gmail.com.
​
Family Sanity is truly a volunteer run organization. Our facilitators, our parent coach, and our founder all work without compensation. Our operating costs have increased dramatically this year, so please donate whatever you can.
​
To donate via check, contact founder Lisa Scimens at lisascimens@gmail.com for the mailing address.
From Our Founder
Happy Spring Everyone!
​
We recently had our first outdoor get together in Berkeley. It was so enjoyable!
Seven of us met for an hour walk around the Berkeley Marina. It was a lovely day. Not too warm and only a bit breezy. A giant dragon was in full sail.
Many of us knew each other via zoom at meetings, but some of us had never met in person which made the experience quite a treat.
At first we seemed to pair off and talk about our kids. After a while, we’d switch and talk to another mom. It was nice to be able to talk to one another longer than when we are in meetings.
We had a delicious lunch at Tacubaya on Fourth Street. And during lunch, the conversation turned personal. We talked about our careers, where we live, where we were originally from. We even discovered that five of the seven of us were at UC Berkeley within a few years of one another. The bonding has begun!
​
We will be holding our next outdoor get together in June, down in the South Bay. We’ll have a date soon and several members are figuring out a location as I write.
​
Hope you will join us then,
Lisa
Bay Area Parent Support Group Forum
​
If you would like to communicate with parents like you about special programs,RTC’s, schools, etc. in between our Family Sanity meetings, there is a San Francisco-based group that provides a listserv that is very helpful. It is run by Lisa Eltinge (lisaeltinge@aol.com) and it is tied to NAMI. Just click on this link http://www.tinyurl.com/Bay-Area-Parent-Forum" or use the following QR Code to sign up:
In The News:
Photo by Stephan Lam
​
From the San Francisco Chronicle:
How California mental health laws failed the Reiners - and all teens who have a serious mental illness by Rachel Howard
Parenting Blogs
The Other Side of the Mother Wound
by Shelly Karpaty
We love to pick on the Mother: for any issue regarding their child’s behavior, addictions, mental health, failures, physical health, basically the lion’s share of care that backfires due to lack of societal support and infrastructure due to the patriarchy. You can read about society blaming the mother here.
​
But beyond calling this out, that’s not what I’m writing about.
​​​​
Testimonials
"Family Sanity has been a lifesaver for me raising 2 teenagers and now young adults as a single mom. I don’t have a great support system, and my siblings / acquaintances really have no idea about raising neuro-divergent kids."