Children of Alcoholics Week
February 12-18, 2006

An estimated 1 in 4 U.S. children is exposed to a family alcohol problem, and countless others are affected by familial drug abuse. These young people are at increased risk of a range of problems, including physical illness, emotional disturbances, behavior problems, lower educational performance, and susceptibility to alcoholism or other addiction later in life.

This is why the National Association for Children of Alcoholics (NACoA) and its affiliates promote Children of Alcoholics Week 2006 from Sunday, February 12, through Saturday, February 18. The theme of this public awareness campaign, "A Celebration of Hope and Healing," offers the potential for resilience in children of alcoholics if caring adults support the well-being of all children, but especially those who struggle with alcohol or drug addiction in their families. NACoA envisions a society in which these vulnerable children are encouraged to seek help and have access to adults who can help them.

Order Children of Alcoholics Week materials

Join the concerted effort to foster public dialog about the best ways to help children living with family addiction.

Children's Program Kit…for People Who Work With Children of Alcoholics or Drug Dependent Parents

The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration’s (SAMHSA’s) Center for Substance Abuse Prevention’s (CSAP’s) Children’s Program Kit gives treatment providers and others the benefits of years of research and hands-on experience by NACoA and others in helping COAs and their families. This valuable resource is for treatment providers and prevention centers that aim to help children make sense of what they’ve been experiencing, cope with the stresses of their families’ problems, and strengthen their potential for resilience.

• Watch a promotional video about the kit
• About the Children's Program Kit

Campaign Publications

• Children of Alcoholics - A Guide to Community Action
• Children of Alcoholics: A Guide to Community Action (PDF)
• You Can Help: A Guide for Caring Adults Working With Young People Experiencing Addiction in the Family
• Children of Alcoholics Week
• Breaking the Cycle of Addiction
• It's Not Your Fault

Posters

• 2006 Children of Alcoholics Week (PDF)
• For Native Americans: So your parents drink too much and you think it’s your fault (PDF)
• Poster: Talking. The Anti-Drug. (Girl's Version): Embarrassed. Angry. Ashamed.
• Poster: Talking. The Anti-Drug (Boys Version): Afraid. Confused. Alone.
• Think Again (PDF)

Proclamation

• Sample Proclamation
• Sample Proclamation (PDF)

Related Publications

• CADCA Strategizer 26: Coalitions Address Children of Alcoholics
• Children of Alcoholics: Important Facts
• CSAP Resource Guide: Children of Alcoholics
• If Someone Close to You Has a Problem With Alcohol or Drugs
• Alcoholism Tends to Run in Families
• Remember the Seven Cs
• DOs and DON’Ts for a Young Person with an Alcoholic Parent

Multimedia

• Lost Childhood: Growing Up in an Alcoholic Family
  In this moving film, you’ll visit a summer camp program for children of alcoholics and hear youngsters tell their experiences in their own words. Then 15 years later, meet some of these same children as adults who received the tools they needed to grow up and lead full, healthy lives.
  View trailer
• Holiday Time Is Difficult for Children of Alcoholics or Drug Using Parents
  Emily, a woman raised in a home where addiction existed, talks about the loneliness, anxiety, and isolation of the holiday season for children of alcohol-and drug-dependent parents.
  View video
• What She Would Say to Other Children of Alcoholics or Drug Using Parents
  It's not your fault! An adult child of alcoholics offers advice and support to children struggling with a parent's addiction and the importance of talking about the problem with a trusted adult.
  View video

For more information, contact NACoA at (888) 554-COAS, or visit their Web site at http://www.nacoa.org. To order additional materials, contact SAMHSA’s National Clearinghouse for Alcohol and Drug Information by calling (800) 729-6686; writing to P.O. Box 2345, Rockville, MD 20847-2345; or visiting http://ncadi.samhsa.gov.