Building Healthy Family Relationships: Grandparents Raising Grandchildren

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Building Healthy Family Relationships
Grandparents Raising Grandchildren

• Presenters
• Danneley Duval
• Kortnie Harris
• Ashley James
• Sophie Namugenyi
• Emily Osteen
• Ebony Reid

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Background Information

• Group 2
• Chapter 12
• Healthy Family Relationships
• Lessons One Two
• Target Audience
• Grandparents, ages 35 and older
• Location Local Church

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Grandparents Raising Grandchildren

• Part One Grandparents as Caregivers
• Part Two Overcoming Stressors
• Part Three Building Healthy Relationships
• with Grandchildren

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Part One Grandparents as Caregivers

• Grandparent or Parent?

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Accepting the New Role

• Number of grandparents raising grandchildren has
  increased in the past twenty years
• Part-time or Full-time Commitment
• Incarceration
• Child Abuse or Neglect
• Mental Disorders
• Increasing Number of Single Parents

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Accepting the New Role (cont.)

• Divorce
• Teenage Pregnancies
• Substance Abuse
• Illness
• Abandonment or Desertion
• Disability or Death

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Changes in Family Structure

• Grandparent may find it difficult to adjust to
  new lifestyle and responsibilities
• Underestimate role
• Generational gap
• Emotional burden
• Financial stressors
• Usually find more grandmothers accepting role as
  primary caregiver

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Video Doubly StressedTriply Blessed
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Part Two Overcoming Stressors

• What are some of the possibilities grandparents
  may have to overcome?

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Unanswered Questions

• May threaten the overall health of the family
• Financial Stressors
• Legal Arrangements
• Health Issues
• Educational Needs
• Supportive Services

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Financial Stress

• 54 of all grandchildren are raised by
  grandparents whose incomes are below federal
  poverty level
• Unaware of the government assistance resources
  available to them and how to access them
• May exhaust retirement funds in an effort to care
  for their grandchildren

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Financial Relief

• Government assistance resources
• Food Stamps
• Social Security Benefits
• Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF)
• The Special Supplemental Food Program for Woman,
  Infants, and Children (WIC)
• Medicaid

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Taking a Closer Look at the Stats
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Choosing a Legal Arrangement

• Many grandparents do not have a legal
  relationship with their grandchildren
• Many grandparents do not understand the
  advantages/disadvantages of each legal option

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Legal Arrangement Options

• Guardianship
• Relative Foster Care
• Legal Custody
• Adoption

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Part Three Building Healthy Family Relationships
with Grandchild

• What are the next steps to ensuring my
  grandchilds success?

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Meeting the Necessary Needs

• Basic Needs
• Develop Social Skills
• Emotional Needs
• Love
• Security
• Support
• Self-Esteem
• Self-Efficacy

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Traits of a Healthy Family

• Affirmation
• Trust
• Commitment
• Quality Time

• Communication
• Respect
• Solving Problems
• Love

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Instilling Values, Culture, and Tradition

• Help grandchild to develop
• Ethnic Identity
• Pride
• Sense of Belonging

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Identifying Your Strength Areas
Strength Area Very Strong Some Growth Needed Much Growth Needed
Acceptance of Responsibility      
Commitment to Family      
Open Communication      
Successful Home Management      
Care of Self      
Maintain Rituals and Traditions      
Maintain Relationships With Nonresidential Parent      
Positive Outlook    
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Review

• Grandparents as Caregivers
• Overcoming Stressors
• Building Healthy Relationships with Grandchildren

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Questions?
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THANK YOU!