Reading about the horrific experience a Prince George mom shared about how her adult son, in the midst of a mental health crisis, was stuck in the emergency department of UHNBC for five days and received no treatment has inspired one reader to reach out.
Kathy Buhler is a parent peer support worker with FamilySmart, which offers to provide help at no cost to families just like Cathy and her son.
“We're a provincial non-profit organization, and we exist entirely to provide support to parents and caregivers whose kids of any age are struggling with their mental health or substance use,” Buhler said.
“We know children and young people do better when the adults who care about them are supported.”
This is Buhler’s dream job and she’s personally invested.
“When my girls were struggling when they were teenagers it felt so lonely and isolating and I feel so honoured to be in a position where I can help families not feel the way I felt,” Buhler shared.
“So a lot of my time is spent just listening. Giving parents and caregivers a safe place to talk to somebody who might get it. Certainly, I may not have the same experiences as they do but I’ve had similar experiences and have talked to several other families who have been in similar circumstances.”
If parents need access to resources, Buhler can help find the resources and navigate the services.
“It’s a huge challenge, especially with waitlists and not every service will work for everybody and not every strategy will work for every family,” Buhler said. “So if they come back to me and say that didn’t really work, then I can try again.”
There are workshops parents and caregivers can access called In the Know, which is offered in a Zoom meeting format that includes watching a video related to child and youth mental health and then there is time for discussion, questions and sharing.
There is also a Help for the Hard Times workshop, specifically for parents and caregivers whose child or loved one has been in hospital due to their mental health or substance use. In that workshop, the topics of discussion include the child’s safety plan, how the child can partner in their own safety plan, how to establish a connection with your child to have those conversations, what resources are out there for their family and even self care.
“Because I certainly know that when your kid is in crisis, your care is the last thing on your list,” Buhler said.
Parents and caregivers can find Kathy at Foundry one day a week, where young people can find hope, help and support for their wellness needs.
Available at the main branch of the Prince George Public Library is a program called Smart Recovery Family & Friends and that’s an ongoing group where any family or friend can come get support for themselves and get tools and learn strategies to help them with their own peace of mind while supporting their loved one.
“Even five years ago when I started this job peer support wasn’t really a thing,” Buhler observed. “So finding support that isn’t therapy, finding support that isn’t counseling – nothing wrong with those things if you can access them, that’s great – this is simply another avenue to get support for yourself where no one is going to judge you, nobody is going to blame you – where you leave a conversation where you feel like ‘yes, that’s it, somebody understands’.”
There are no waitlists and no paperwork is required to access FamilySmart. Parents and caregivers can reach out by calling local 236-471-6494 or email [email protected].
