Nadine Gilden

Parents Anonymous, a nonprofit dedicated to supporting parents, children and youth, recently celebrated the grand opening of its new San Fernando Valley Well-Being Center in Van Nuys. The ribbon-cutting event welcomed community members, representatives of local dignitaries and parent advocates for an evening of food, family-friendly activities and connection.

The new Center expands no-cost, evidence-based mental health services across Los Angeles County. Families will have access to weekly Parents Anonymous Adult, Children & Youth Groups that are trauma-informed and built on personal strengths, along with individual and family therapy sessions, tailored referrals and resource navigation, and 24/7 crisis intervention through the National Parent & Youth Helpline.

After the ceremony, guests had the opportunity to tour the new facility, meet staff and learn more about how the Center will serve as a hub for connection, healing and empowerment – backed by more than 56 years of Parents Anonymous expertise.

“Families in the San Fernando Valley deserve access to meaningful support close to home,” said Dr. Lisa Pion-Berlin, president & CEO of Parents Anonymous. “This new Center builds on more than five decades of evidence-based work and ensures that parents and youth in this community can find connection, compassion and healing when they need it most.”

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Policy decisions on the state and federal levels are creating chaos for the California-based National Parent and Youth Helpline, a service that connects callers in emotional distress to trained counselors. California cut $3 million for the helpline out of the state budget this past June, after supporting the program since its inception in 2020.

Lisa Pion-Berlin, president and CEO of Parents Anonymous, the nonprofit organization that runs the helpline, said the cuts came at a particularly bad time, because calls to the helpline doubled between August and September.

“So, we know the demand is increasing, but our capacity is not increasing, which means one thing – our abandonment rate goes up,” she said. “We can’t answer fast enough, we can’t respond fast enough because we don’t have the staff to do that. People who leave us messages, we call them back. We have people who are in crisis who, we call them back, several times.”

Pion-Berlin added that cuts to SNAP and Medicaid in the Republican tax-cut-and-spending bill passed this summer will hurt struggling families. She adds she worries that the administration will use the government shutdown as an excuse to cut social service programs like the helpline, which receives $2 million a year in federal funds.

In July, the Trump administration pulled the plug on the specialized counseling for LGBTQ people that used to be available on the 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline. Pion-Berlin added that, along with other federal policy changes, is causing emotional turmoil.

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Parents Anonymous Inc. hosted a ribbon-cutting Thursday evening to celebrate the grand opening of its new Antelope Valley Well-Being Center, giving families in Palmdale a new resource for support.

The center, at 38345 30th St. East, Suite C-2, will provide free, evidence-based mental health services for parents, children and youth. The goal is to reduce stress and isolation while helping families build on their strengths and improve overall well-being.

“This new Well-Being Center reflects our unwavering commitment to meet parents, children, and youth where they are, with compassion, evidence-based care, and community,” said Dr. Lisa Pion-Berlin, president and CEO of Parents Anonymous. “By expanding into (the) Antelope Valley, we are addressing critical gaps in mental health and prevention services, ensuring that parents and youth feel less alone, more supported and better equipped to thrive.”

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On this edition of Your Call, we continue our discussions about California’s budget cuts, which could potentially eliminate funding for the Parents Anonymous’ California Parent & Youth Helpline.

In May 2020, Parents Anonymous, an organization that supports parents and their families, launched the hotline in partnership with state leadership as part of an initiative to support parents, children, and youth impacted by COVID. The helpline now operates in over 80 percent of California counties and has helped hundreds of thousands across the state for the last five years.

According to Parents Anonymous, the state legislature proposed $3 million for the organization in this year’s budget proposal, but as of Tuesday, the organization was made aware that Governor Gavin Newsom “redlined” their total budget.

“This comes as a shock as last month the Helpline had a peer-reviewed study published in the Journal of Technology in Human Services, which showed that 85% of callers experienced improved mood and reduced stress within a single call, proving its effectiveness.”

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Phone lines that provide mental health support to tens of thousands of Californians say they are on the verge of shutting down or dramatically scaling back as a result of cuts in the state’s new budget. 

Representatives from the support lines, which are distinct from hotlines that serve people in crisis, say they help thousands of Californians with mental health needs each month.

And with more people than ever calling or texting for help, they say, the so-called warm lines are falling victim to both the budget shortfall and, in some cases, the roll out of Proposition 1, a 2024 ballot measure that redirected some tax revenue from mental health services toward housing.

“We save lives every day,” said Dr. Lisa Pion-Berlin, chief executive of Parents Anonymous, whose California Parents & Youth Helpline serves about 24,000 people a year. “Without that safety net there, where are people going to go?”

Pion-Berlin said the organization had requested $3 million a year from the state; the budget Gov. Gavin Newsom signed last week didn’t provide any of it. Layoffs have already begun.

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Sunscreen, swimsuits, and sertraline — what else do you need for a perfect summer? Around February, my mental health takes a huge dip as I stressfully anticipate the weeks between the end of May and middle of August. Yes, my anxiety spikes 3 months early because February is the month when kids’ summer camps begin to fill up. And despite how expensive they are, those days I can drop my three kids off for a few hours provide much-needed childcare for me.

My husband works in-office the majority of the time, so I signed up my kids for a few weeks of summer camp to help me get my work done. That doesn’t totally ease my anxiety, though. After all, it just makes me busier as I have to chauffeur my kids around. In the study, 86 percent of parents believe the 2025 summer will be busier than last year, due to plans to attend more events for their kids (49 percent), managing their kids’ schedules even more (44 percent), and planning more summer camps and activities (44 percent).

Dr. Lisa Pion-Berlin, a mom herself and CEO of Parents Anonymous, tells SheKnows, “Summer breaks down the carefully established routines which many families need for stability. Because schools are closed, parents face significant stress from having to juggle being entertainers, teachers and caregivers all at once to fill their children’s time.”

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A groundbreaking new study confirms what California families have long known: when overwhelmed parents reach out to the California Parent & Youth Helpline®, they leave feeling stronger, calmer, and far less alone.

Published in the Journal of Technology in Human Services, the peer-reviewed research validates the effectiveness of Parents Anonymous, Inc.®‘s Helpline, showing that in under 30 minutes, callers experience significant improvements in mood, engagement, and parenting outlook.

The study, led by Liz Harris, PhD, Faculty Associate at Arizona State University, analyzed 281 Helpline calls made between late 2022 and early 2023. Using a novel approach that combined AI-based sentiment analysis with qualitative methods, the research team found that 85% of parents showed improved mood during the call, an especially meaningful finding in a post-pandemic landscape marked by soaring parental isolation.

“Helplines have existed for decades, but surprisingly, very little research has explored their actual impact,” said Liz Harris, Lead Author and Researcher. “Our study shows that parents’ emotional state measurably improves – an improvement we could see through natural language processing analysis, traditional qualitative content coding and rate of speech.”

Innovative Research, Real Results
The team applied natural language processing technology, specifically BART, to measure how parental sentiment shifted throughout each call. They validated the use of BART for this purpose against qualitative coding done by the authors and by trained parent service users.  They found that callers’ language became more positive, their tone more collaborative, and their pace of speech dropped in half, indicating reduced distress.

Key findings include:

• Statistically significant improvement (p<.001) in parental mood and optimism over the course of each call.
• 85% of callers left feeling more emotionally balanced.
• Speech slowed during calls, aligning unconscious vocal cues with the emotional shift measured by AI tools.
• Over 50% of parents expressed intense loneliness and the Helpline directly helped alleviate that isolation.
• Callers responded especially well to counselors who validated their efforts, praised their parenting instincts, and offered tailored resources or emotional support.

“This is the first study to rigorously validate the use of AI-based tools in evaluating emotional change on a helpline,” said Harris. “It’s a big leap forward for how the human services field can measure impact without burdening vulnerable callers with lengthy surveys.”

A Proven Model for Crisis Support
The research underscores the unique value of the Parents Anonymous model, which prioritizes trauma-informed counseling and ensures all Helpline counselors have formal training or degrees in mental health fields.

Now in its fifth year, the Helpline offers free, confidential, 24/7 emotional support in English, Spanish, and over 250+ other languages. With its anniversary approaching on May 9, the service stands as a compelling example of scalable, accessible intervention, especially as child welfare agencies and funders weigh future investments.

“We’ve shown it’s possible to make a meaningful difference in a parent’s mental state in just one call,” said Dr. Lisa Pion-Berlin, CEO & President of Parents Anonymous. “And when you reduce parental stress and loneliness, you improve outcomes for children. That’s the power of this model.”

Parents and youth (up to 25) based in California needing emotional support can call the California Parent & Youth Helpline by calling/texting 1-855-427-2736 or through live chat 24/7 at caparentyouthhelpline.org. Outside of California? Parents and youth can call/text 855-427-2736 or chat online through nationalparentyouthhelpline.org.

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The California Parent and Youth Helpline turns five years old today – just in time for a brand new study that confirms its effectiveness.

The study, published in the Journal of Technology in Human Services, found that 85% of people felt more positive, calmer and less angry after calling in.

Lead author Elizabeth Harris, a sociology professor at Arizona State University, said that kind of result is rare in social science research.

“Parenting interventions are expensive and difficult to do,” she said. “Most interventions take months to take effect, so to be able to do an effective intervention in 30 minutes, that’s a big deal.”

The data also show about one-third of callers improved significantly on the scale – meaning they either went from making all negative statements to feeling 100% neutral, or they started off neutral and said they felt “100% positive” by the end of the call.

Parents and youths in distress can reach a trained counselor at 855-427-2736, 12 hours a day, seven days a week. Or they can reach out online at CAparentyouthhelpline.org.

Read more about the effectiveness of the California Parent & Youth Helpline

Emotional distress and crises don’t take holidays. They don’t take the weekends off or pause for the evening after the work or school day is done. Fortunately, neither do the trained counselors at the National Parent & Youth Helpline™. Whether someone is in the midst of a personal or mental health crisis, or they just need someone to talk to, the Helpline’s counselors are ready to help, 24/7 every day of the year, via phone or text at 855-427-2736, via live chat at www.nationalparentyouthhelpline.org, and via email.

“Our compassionate and trained Helpline counselors provide evidence-based support for any parent, caregiver, child or youth up to age 25, even if they do not live under the same roof,” said Dr. Lisa Pion-Berlin, ACSW, ACHT, President and CEO, Parents Anonymous, which operates the Helpline. “We can help with both emotional issues and practical ones. For example, we recently counseled people living through the Los Angeles wildfires about everything from the mental anguish of losing their homes, jobs and schools, to how to find a shelter. We provide resources and referrals and encourage those reaching out to call or connect with us as often as they need to get their issue resolved.”

Read more at HealthWell Foundation

Taking care of the children of the world is a daunting task. Taking care of their parents as well takes inordinate energy and dedication. That’s Dr. Lisa Pion Berlin’s mission.

Throughout my career as a social worker, clinical hypnotherapist and CEO of Parents Anonymous Inc., I’ve always viewed advocacy as central to who I am and what my contribution is as a caring, participating citizen of the world. My passion is to support the empowerment journey of diverse parents, children and youth.

Before becoming CEO at Parents Anonymous, I managed a state-level foundation dedicated to strengthening families to prevent child abuse and neglect. I witnessed parents and young people being pushed aside and not fully understood, which motivated me to stand up for change. My experience in that position not only enhanced my abilities as a leader, but it amplified my sense of determination to help both parents and youth, which has continued to guide me in my career journey.

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