Supporting Families Impacted by Self-Harm

Clinicians working with children, adolescents, and young adults struggling with self-harming behaviors and/or suicide are often asked to provide guidance and consultation to family members, particularly the parents. This can be an additional stressor for clinicians, who may find it challenging to maintain their alliance with the patient while trying to support the family system.

Parents frequently report feeling overwhelmed in parenting a child struggling with self-harm and often suffer in silence, without support, treatment, or training in skills to help their child in need. This webinar examines how clinicians can gain confidence in supporting parents through compassion, skills training, and support groups to provide comprehensive treatment for the entire family.

Learning objectives

By the end of this webinar, participants can:

• Describe the increased rates of suicide in preteens, adolescents, and young adults in contrast to all other leading causes of death for the same-aged population.

• Discuss the significant shifts in PTSD and family functioning through parent skills training and support.

• Identify ways in which compassion can play an integral role in families with a child struggling with self-harm.