“Parents are People” is a book that aims to help parents and children through every day life especially when the parent or guardian is struggling with mental health, like depression, anxiety… or any other mental health disorder …I have seen books, directed at children about children, and for children regarding their feelings and mental health, but not many aimed at helping kids understand the actions and responses to every day stressors of parents who may be dealing with mental health disorders or simply might be having a bad day. This book started as a poem that I wrote to my own children.

In response to the mom guilt I felt for what felt like a million failures as a parent. As I struggled with my bipolar disorder, depression disorder, and anxiety disorder, I felt like I wanted to express to my children that I was dealing with something as a person that was completely unrelated to them.

I want to make sure that my children know that my struggles as an adult were not in any way connected to them and I do not want them to internalize them to be such. For example, if I am sad and grouchy, I want to make sure that my children understand they didn’t do anything wrong.

I’m a person, and I might just be having a bad day. It’s so hard to raise whole untainted children when you are an unhealed and imperfect adult who is still working to heal your own inner child.

None of us want to taint our children up because we are still a work in progress. I want to be honest and transparent with my children.

I do not want to paint myself to be a superhuman, and then, and then disappoint them when they find out that I am just a regular person who has flaws. “Parents Are People” was written with the intention of being an aid to parents to have these tough conversations with children.

I’m excited to share, and I hope you all benefit from it in the same way that I have. .