Toolkit for Supporting Children Impacted by Addiction

The Toolkit for Supporting Children Impacted by Addiction assists those who are working in a role to support a child of addiction. The Toolkit is developed by the organization Joining Forces for Children, a collaborative partnership among Lancaster County agencies serving children impacted by addiction. Highlights of the Toolkit include defining addiction, explaining how addiction is a family disease, addressing how addiction affects children, providing information about attachment issues, recommending ways to support children through recovery, and listing common warning signs indicating a substance use issue. The Toolkit also offers some tested and effective strategies for navigating difficult conversations (regardless of the topic) and provides some considerations for how to include more trauma-informed practices into the support of children. A few local resources are included as a starting point for entry into the local drug and alcohol treatment and recovery support systems. A more exhaustive list of resources can be found on LancasterJoiningForces.org.