And how are you? — parents of children living with an illness rarely hear this question. The attention of the environment, and even of the parents themselves, is centered on the child’s health, which often pushes the emotional well-being of mothers and fathers into the background. We have launched a program for parents to support them in the everyday challenges they face.

Constant alertness, sleeplessness, worry, anxiety — familiar situations for every mother and father. This is especially true for parents whose children are living with an illness. Everyday life revolves around symptoms, treatments, the next step, and tasks that need to be solved. Long hours are spent in waiting rooms, even longer weeks in hospitals.

The mission of the Bátor Tábor Foundation is to provide soul-healing experiences for children living with serious or lifelong illnesses and their entire families. Their newly launched free experiential therapy program, the Parent Program, aims to support those parents whose days are defined not only by logistics and responsibilities related to their child’s illness, but also by constant worry and continuous vigilance.

A serious or long-term illness affects the whole family — especially when the child of the family is facing a difficult diagnosis. Almost every family experiences isolation, uncertainty and fear. Parents often feel left alone — even their closest friends may not know what to ask or how to approach them.

Állandó készenlét, ébrenlét, aggódás, szorongás – ismerős helyzetek minden anyának és apának. Különösen igaz ez azokra a szülőkre, akiknek a gyermeke betegséggel él együtt. A mindennapok a tünetek, kezelések, a következő lépés, a megoldandó feladatok köré szerveződnek. Hosszú órák telnek el a váróban, még hosszabb hetek a kórházban. A Bátor Tábor Alapítvány küldetése, hogy a súlyos vagy élethosszig tartó betegséggel élő gyerekek egész családjának lélekgyógyító élményeket nyújtson. Most induló ingyenes, élményterápiás programjuk, a Szülőprogram célja, hogy támogassa azokat a szülőket, akiknek mindennapjait a gyermekük betegsége körüli teendők, feladatok mellett az aggódás és a folyamatos készenlét hatja át.

Egy súlyos vagy tartós betegség az egész családot érinti – főleg, ha a család gyermeke néz szembe egy nehéz diagnózissal. Szinte minden családnál megjelenik az elszigeteltség, a bizonytalanság és a félelem. A szülők sokszor úgy érzik, egyedül maradtak – hiszen a legjobb barátaik sem tudják, mit kérdezzenek vagy hogyan közelítsenek hozzájuk.

Anett Zsákai-Kis, the lead of Bátor Tábor’s Parent Program, often observes during family camps how deeply these parents long for real connection. “I remember a mother who, at the end of an adults’ session at camp, said: ‘This was the first time in months that I could talk only about myself — not about the illness, not about the doctor — but about me.‘ That really stayed with me.’”

This is exactly the goal of the program: to give parents space to become themselves again. To allow them to experience that they are not alone. That laughter and a sense of freedom are not luxuries but true necessities. Many have highlighted how comforting it was to meet and talk with other parents who are in similar situations. “We often see at the camps that for many, it is the first time they meet others walking in the same shoes; it is not uncommon for lifelong friendships to form,” Anett Zsákai-Kis added. “Our aim is to support parents in transforming from individuals with similar struggles into a community.”

Parents’ opportunity to recharge, connect and switch off is further supported by the fact that during the Parent Program, their children take part in experiential therapy sessions led by Bátor Tábor’s trained volunteers.