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):
Parents of Older Teens and Young Adults (18 to 38 years)
Monthly Parent Support Groups
Tuesdays: 6:00PM - 8:00PM (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.
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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.
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To donate via check, contact founder Lisa Scimens at lisascimens@gmail.com for the mailing address.
From Our Founder
Something New...
You may remember some recent rumblings that Family Sanity was going to venture into the world or Podcasts. Why, you asked? Isn’t that world over-saturated? Because we provide so much valuable information and so many resources in each meeting, it seems a shame to only share it with the parents who attend. So starting now, you will be able to capture that knowledge by viewing one of our podcasts.
Our first Family Sanity Podcast was recorded this summer. It is called “The Spiritual Side of Parenting” and features Family Sanity member Shelley Karpaty. She is a mentor, writer and a mindfulness teacher. I did the interview and asked her questions from my own-point-of-view being a lifelong skeptic who has tried meditation quite a bit and always seems to get bored after a few years and then quit. I’d like to be more spiritual in a non-religious way, but since I am still raising a young adult with mental health problems, I don’t seem to have time.
Sound familiar?
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Well, if you are curious, I encourage you to take a look at the Podcast. I’d love to hear your feedback. (I know I should wear make-up next time:)​
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Lisa
Bay Area Parent Support Group Forum
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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:
Parenting Blogs
The Sabbatical My Nervous System Begged For
by Shelley Karpaty
We recently saw the one and only John Mellencamp on the last show of his 6-month Dancing Words Tour — The Greatest Hits. It was nostalgia of the bittersweet kind, knowing we are all older, and with every song, flashes of adolescent memories flickered in my mind’s eye.
Remember when John Cougar barreled onto the scene with “Jack and Diane?” Watching the new excitement of MTV music videos and wondering who this Midwest James Dean vibe apparition was on the screen. He was definitely the boy your mother worried about, smoking, riding a motorcycle with that undeniably beautiful head of wavy hair that I would have loved to drag my fingers through.
Free In-Person Meeting​
Bring your partner or a friend
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Family Sanity will host a free in-person meeting open to all Family Sanity parents on Sunday, September 13th, from 1pm-3pm. The meeting will be held at the Museum of American Heritage, Palo Alto. Please sign up for this free event as soon as you can. You will meet, share, and connect with other parents with similar experiences. We look forward to seeing you!
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Date/Time: Sunday, September 13th, 1pm-3pm
Location: Training Room of Palo Alto Museum of American Heritage, 351 Homer Avenue, Palo Alto, CA 94301
Facilitators: Lie-Yea Cheng and Mary Vincent
Event day contact: (650) 353-0523
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Keep Up-to-Date on our
Meetings and Special Activities
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Did you know Family Sanity has a newsletter? It comes out the first week of the month, plus we send a few reminders and updates about what’s going on. It’s a great way to make sure you don’t miss meetings or events like our upcoming walks and luncheons around the Bay. Also, if you want to introduce a friend to our group, you can simply forward it to them.
Beginning with August meetings, there will be a $10 charge per person for attending all monthly zoom meetings and podcasts. In-person meetings will remain Free. All meetings are free for Family Sanity VIP’s.*
The reason for this change is that we recently had the unpleasant experience of being Zoom-Bombed during a discussion of parents. It was a very rattling experience for us all. While taking security measures to make sure it doesn’t happen again, we are also reinstating a fee for meetings believing that it will help deter potential zoom-bombers.
If you are experiencing financial hardship and can’t afford to buy a ticket for a meeting, please contact me (lisascimens@gmail.com) about attending gratis.
Another change we are making in hope of deterring zoom-bombers is that we won’t be sending out zoom links until the day before the meeting. Please continue to sign up as soon as you know you want to attend a meeting. Look for the email reminder the day before with the link you will need.
* Want to know more about becoming a Family Sanity VIP? Please contact me at: lisascimens@gmail.com.
New! Mentoring Services
If you did not make it to our recent special event on Mentoring, you may want to visit our new Mentoring Services page in our Resources. The two mentors who presented at the event are listed along with a plethora of other ones. Some are Bay Area oriented and others work virtually with teens and young adults across the nation. A few actually mentor parents, as well. To find out more about mentoring, which is a very valuable service for many people, click here to visit this Family Sanity resource.
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."