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, Tweens, and Younger Children
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: 7:00PM - 9:00PM (Virtual)
Next Meeting Dates (click date to register):
From Our Founder
Hello Everyone,
We are in the process of changing our meeting schedule and the focus of the previous parents of teens groups .
As of March 1, we will be combining the two teen meetings into one meeting. It will meet monthly on the second Saturday from 2-4pm. Our Teen group facilitators will be rotating. We will no longer be breaking them into Peninsula and East Bay/North Bay groups, so please feel free to attend the meetings no matter where you live.
We are also encouraging people with tweens and younger children to attend. One of our facilitators is very knowledgeable about getting elementary school kids started with the IEP process which is extremely helpful. As most of us know, the earlier you start the process if you suspect your child has learning or mental health issues, the better. Please feel free to come to these meetings if your child is in primary school or as young as 6 years old.
We will be calling the group Parents of Teens, Tweens, and Younger Children. To sign up for our first meeting on Saturday, March 14, click here.
Hope to see you.
Lisa
Parenting Solutions for Every Stage
Sarah MacKay Lynch, M.A.
At Family Sanity, we get it--parenting a complex teen or young adult is tough. Whether you're navigating daily conflict, substance use, or a slow path to independence...
There is help. And there is hope.
Most parents want to:
✔ Worry less
✔ Feel more connected to their teen or young adult
✔ Reduce daily conflict
✔ Empower their child to manage their life
The change we want starts with us. Together, we create clear strategies to help you parent with more confidence and calm,.
Ways We Can Work Together:
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1:1 Parent Coaching
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Laser Group Coaching Sessions
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Support Groups
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Parenting Book Club
Let’s Talk.
📧 Email: sarahmackaycoaching@gmail.com
🌐 Schedule a FREE 25-minute consultation
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.
Parenting Blogs
The Dinner Table
by Lisa Scimens
Do you have a difficult teen or young adult child who lives with you? Do you have a hard time getting them to talk to you or engage in any way? Do they spend most of their days in their rooms on the computer? Do you really have very little idea of what they are up to?
My next question: Do you have family dinners?
If not, you are not alone. YouGov’s (https://yougov.com/) research showed that about 29% of families report eating together every night and 23% eat together 4-6 nights per week.
In our Family Sanity groups, we often hear that challenging teens never come to the dinner table. Parents prepare meals for them and bring them to their rooms which they eat in front of their computers. Sound familiar?
Do you need to talk to someone ASAP?
Caregiving isn’t easy.
Providing care to someone with a mental health condition comes with unique challenges: Seeing someone you love in pain, navigating red tape through confusing systems, fighting stigma and myths about mental illness, and advocating for your loved one when no one else will.
To be a caregiver is to practice resilience, strength, and compassion, braving challenge after challenge. With the new NAMI Family Caregiver HelpLine, you can find support rooted in lived experience and designed to help you access resources and find hope. If nothing else feels easy, finding experienced support can be. Take a moment today to connect with the NAMI Family Caregiver HelpLine available Monday through Friday, 7am to 7pm Pacific.
Call: 1-800-950-NAMI (6264) or Text: 62640
https://www.nami.org/support-education/nami-helpline/family-caregiver-helpline/
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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:
Bay Area Parent Support Group Forum
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."