Difficult: The Untold Story of Parenting a Challenging Adult Child

Dr. Judith Smith, a long-time Central member, coined the name "difficult adult child" after listening to 50 different women share stories of how their adult child's chronic unemployment, mental illness, or substance abuse created difficult or impossible choices for them as mothers. Each woman struggled with the conflict of whose needs take precedence – mine or my adult child’s? These families have kept their pain, worry, and ambivalence hidden for too long, due to the stigma and shame linked with their adult children’s failure to achieve. In conversation with Rabbi Nicole Auerbach, Judith will talk to us about the findings from her research and share recommendations on how some have been able to take small steps to address this painful situation.