Peace at Home Blog

Children’s Mental Health Problems are Family Problems That Impact the Workplace

May 2026 | Ruth Freeman, Kathleen Harkins Weissenberger

Quick Summary: More than half of working parents say their child’s mental health concerns disrupt their work, and most don’t feel equipped to help. Parenting support in the workplace, not just more information, is the missing link. Programs that teach parents evidence-based strategies improve both children’s well-being and employee focus.

Post-pandemic family life has been dramatically impacted by the perfect storm of working parent burnout in combination with our national pediatric mental health crisis. Children and teens are suffering from anxiety, depression, and suicide at alarming rates. Working parents are craving support and information to gain the confidence and clarity they need to help their kids.

Why Mental Health is Important

Mental Health concerns top the list of worries for parents, and this concern is having a significant impact in the workplace (The Great Collide), which is exactly why parenting support in the workplace has become a business issue, not just a personal one.

More than half of parents have their work disrupted by their children’s mental health concerns, and 71% of those parents say their job is much harder to handle due to those concerns.

Unfortunately, parents are often unsure what to do to protect their children’s mental health and are underutilized during the treatment process. As such, parents may also be unclear about their role in their child’s treatment.

Furthermore, parents may need support in coping with their own emotional responses to their child’s mental health issues and may not recognize or deal with their own behavioral health problems.

The best way to help children and teens’ mental health is to (1) ensure that their home environment supports their well-being and (2) give their parents guidance, tools, and strategies to create that positive home environment and navigate these uncharted waters.  

The parent-child relationship is the most powerful mental health intervention known to humankind. – Bessel van der Kolk  

Expert Solutions for Parents

The good news is that there are evidence-based solutions and support for parents, and parents are looking for that help. Let’s complete the missing link in pediatric mental health treatment with a corporate parenting support program that teaches parents how to “Parent for Mental Well-being.”

Peace At Home Parenting Solutions has created this interactive psychoeducational program for parents and caregivers, giving them the support to protect and navigate their child’s mental health journey.

This comprehensive initiative is designed to empower parents with the knowledge and skills they need to better understand, communicate with, and support their children dealing with mental health concerns, from protective everyday parent-child interactions to coping with self-harm and suicidal thoughts. 

What Peace at Home Offers

The Peace At Home “Parenting for Mental Well-Being” program will help parents identify and apply practical strategies to create a nurturing relationship. Moreover, it also builds a “secure base” that protects children and teens’ mental health and helps them cope when symptoms arise. 

Participants in the Parent for Mental Wellbeing Program will be able to

• Distinguish between children “giving us a hard time” and “having a hard time.” 
• Identify yellow and red flags related to children’s mental health issues. 
• Also recognize ways parents try to help that actually reinforce children’s symptoms. 
• Apply self-regulation and co-regulation approaches that reduce stress and conflict. 
• Apply connection and communication strategies that help children build confidence, optimism, and resilience. 
• Recognize the ways parents’ own childhoods may affect their thoughts and behaviors. 
• Recognize the power of modeling good health habits, self-care, and self-talk.

Educating Parents is Key

Parenting education and support are critical pieces for improving mental health outcomes for children and families, while also helping parents thrive at home and at work. Peace At Home customizes the Parent for Mental Well-Being program, which is offered as a parenting program and employee benefit.

It’s meant to meet your team’s needs and includes the right combination of live interactive workshops, small group consulting sessions, on-demand resource guides with quick strategy-filled libraries, and 1:1 consulting support by advanced-degree specialists.

We coordinate with Employee Resource Groups, behavioral health teams, EAPs, and others so they can refer parents to resources as concerns arise. In addition, our resources also include evidence-based child development and parenting solutions from prenatal to young adulthood.

A wonderful 98% of Parent for Mental Wellbeing workshop participants report feeling more confident in their parenting skills, and 88% agree that our workshops provide solutions that help them focus at work. 

Here’s what participants have to say:

• Are my actions creating CALM or stress? – I will ask myself these questions with every interaction!
• Well-organized presentation, offering a lot of recommendations that I could see myself using.
• I loved the list at the end that included some quick, simple changes that can be made and are impactful.
• The presentation shared a wealth of useful information. There is a lot for me to draw on to help myself and my children cope with life’s challenges, no matter the age. I will attend more sessions.
• This was a wonderful session. Jam-packed with information… But I‘m glad to know there are resources where we can sign up to take in some of this in bite-sized pieces.

Frequently Asked Questions

How does children’s mental health affect the workplace?

More than half of working parents report that their job performance is disrupted by their child’s mental health concerns. 71% say those concerns make their job much harder to manage. Thankfully, workplace parenting support reduces this disruption. It gives parents tools before a crisis escalates.

What is parenting support in the workplace?

Parenting support in the workplace refers to employer-provided resources. This includes workshops, consulting, and on-demand guides that help employees navigate their children’s mental health and development. It gives parents practical strategies instead of leaving them to figure things out on their own.

Why don’t parents just handle their child’s mental health on their own?

Many parents are unsure of their role in a child’s treatment, unclear on how to support progress at home, or unaware of their own unresolved patterns shaping their reactions. Parenting support in the workplace fills that gap with structured, evidence-based guidance rather than trial and error.

Does parenting support actually help employees perform better at work?

Yes. In Peace At Home’s Parent for Mental Wellbeing program, 98% of participants reported feeling more confident in their parenting, and 88% said the program helped them focus better at work, directly linking parenting support to workplace performance.

How can employers offer parenting support in the workplace?

Employers can offer parenting support in the workplace through live workshops, small group consulting, on-demand resource guides, and 1:1 specialist consulting, often coordinated with EAPs, ERGs, and behavioral health teams to reach parents before problems escalate.

Give working parents on-demand parenting resources for employees so they gain confidence and clarity at home and can focus at work while their families thrive.

Bring Peace at Home to your employees now. Let’s talk.

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