Resources for New and Expectant Parents (in alphabetical order)
"211 connects Bay Area residents with health & human service programs in their local community" Find them at http://www.211bayarea.org or by dialing 211 on your phone.
California Association of Infant Mental Health
“The California Association for Infant Mental Health (CalAIMH) advocates for the needs of all children ages pre-natal to five in the state of California. We are transdisciplinary in our approach; we welcome everyone, from any field or profession, who wishes to be informed about infant mental health. Together we will ensure relational health for all young children in California.” Find them at www.calaimh.org
"Crisis Text Line serves anyone, in any type of crisis, providing access to free, 24/7 support and information via the medium people already use and trust: text." Find them at https://www.crisistextline.org/how-it-works/
"A drug and alcohol abuse hotline aims to help individuals who are addicted to drugs or alcohol and provide them with information related to addiction and treatment. These hotlines are confidential, free, and exist to help those suffering from addiction even if they feel hopeless about recovery. Find them at https://www.addictionresource.net/addiction-hotlines/.
"At First 5 California, we fund programs that educate parents, grandparents, caregivers, and teachers about the critical role they play during a child’s first five years." Their website has information about brain development, language development, reading, fine and gross motor skills, preschool, child care, and early math. Find them at http://www.first5california.com.
"FIRST WORDS®Project is a longitudinal research investigation in the Florida State University Autism Institute in the College of Medicine directed by Dr. Amy Wetherby. Our major goal is to identify early signs of developmental language disorders, autism spectrum disorder, and other communication delays in children from 9 to 24 months of age.
Through our research findings and resources provided on our website, we aim to improve screening tools and early detection of communication problems by maximizing the role of the family and to help families support their child’s development and access intervention services sooner." Find them at www.firstwordsproject.com.
"The mission of the Center on the Developing Child is to drive science-based innovation that achieves breakthrough outcomes for children facing adversity.
We believe that advances in science provide a powerful source of new ideas focused on the early years of life. Founded in 2006, the Center catalyzes local, national, and international innovation in policy and practice focused on children and families. We design, test, and implement these ideas in collaboration with a broad network of research, practice, policy, community, and philanthropic leaders. Together, we seek transformational impacts on lifelong learning, behavior, and both physical and mental health." Find them at http://developingchild.harvard.edu/
We are dedicated to helping new and expectant moms and their families overcome postpartum depression and other perinatal mood and anxiety disorders by offering information, resources, support and hope. Check them out at https://supportingmamas.org.
Lara Elfstrand is a member of Zero to Three. ZERO TO THREE works to ensure that babies and toddlers benefit from the early connections that are critical to their well-being and development. Visit them at zerotothree.org.
