When our child has mental illness or a substance abuse problem, we often focus on the adult child and getting them help– if they are willing. But how do the adult child's difficulties impact the mother and how long is she responsible for parenting her troubled child? If he or she is violent, does she call the police on her own child?

Professor and advocate Dr. Judith Smith has written a groundbreaking book that has sparked a long overdue conversation about the hidden and prolonged struggles of older mothers with adult children facing serious mental health and substance use challenges. The author of "Difficult: Mothering Challenging Adult Children Through Conflict and Change", Dr. Smith Draws from her extensive research and the heartfelt stories of fifty women, Dr. Smith coined the term "difficult adult child" to describe the strain of dealing with issues such as serious mental health, chronic unemployment, and substance abuse disorder in one's adult children. Find out more at : https://www.difficultmothering.com

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