This op-ed by CFS Chief Program Officer, Robert Boyack, appeared in the May 24, 2026 Honolulu Star Advertiser.

Mental Health Awareness Month often focuses on individuals in crisis. But across Hawaii, there is another reality we do not talk about enough: many families are simply exhausted.

Parents are working multiple jobs while trying to keep up with rising costs. Grandparents are stepping into caregiving roles. Families are still recovering emotionally and financially from the lasting impacts of the pandemic, natural disasters and economic uncertainty. Even those who appear to be holding everything together are often doing so while carrying tremendous stress behind closed doors.

At Child & Family Service, we see this every day.

We meet parents who are overwhelmed but afraid to ask for help because they believe they are supposed to “handle it.” We see caregivers stretched so thin that they have little time to care for themselves. We work with children struggling with anxiety, emotional regulation and behavioral challenges that are often rooted in the stress surrounding them.

Many families are functioning, but barely.

Mental health does not exist in isolation. It is connected to housing stability, financial pressure, family relationships, trauma, and whether people feel supported by their community. When families are constantly in survival mode, emotional exhaustion becomes normalized. Over time, that stress affects parents, children, relationships, schools, workplaces and entire communities.

That is why our agency takes a whole-family approach to mental health and well-being.

We are working to meet people where they are, offering services across Oahu, Kauai, Maui County and Hawaii island. We use evidence-based therapies like cognitive behavioral therapy and models like Transition to Success, which address not just symptoms, but the root causes that often erode mental well-being — poverty, trauma, instability and social inequities.

Across our programs, we provide counseling and behavioral health support, domestic violence services, parenting education, early childhood programs, financial empowerment services, housing support, and resources for youth and kupuna. In many cases, the challenges families face are interconnected, and meaningful support requires looking at the full picture, not just one issue in isolation.

One of the most important lessons we have learned is that early support matters.

Too often, people wait until situations become overwhelming before seeking help. But mental health care is not only about responding to crises. It is also about prevention, connection and creating spaces where families feel safe asking for support before challenges escalate.

Sometimes that support means therapy or crisis intervention. Other times, it means helping a parent navigate stress, connecting a survivor to safety, supporting a child struggling in school, or helping a family regain stability after hardship. The earlier support is available, the stronger families can become.

We also need to continue breaking the stigma surrounding mental health. Asking for help should never be viewed as weakness. In reality, it is one of the strongest things a person can do.

In Hawaii, we often pride ourselves on resilience. That resilience is real. But resilience should not mean carrying every burden alone.

Mental Health Awareness Month is an opportunity to move beyond awareness and toward action.

That means continuing to invest in prevention, strengthening community- based services, supporting mental health professionals and caregivers, and ensuring families across our islands can access care before challenges become crises.

We remain committed to walking alongside Hawaii’s families through both their struggles and their healing. Because when families are supported, communities become stronger.

And right now, many families simply need to know that they do not have to carry everything on their own.

The original article is available at: https://www.staradvertiser.com/2026/05/24/editorial/insight/column-holistic-help-for-families-in-mental-health-crisis/ (subscription may be required)