Bring Them Closer:
Calling Parents to Courage through the Mental Health Crisis

Our kids are not okay.

The children and youth mental health crisis is at an all-time high. Anxiety and depression are skyrocketing. Over the last ten years, there has been a 55% increase in the hospitalization of children and youth due to mental health concerns, and many parents are at a loss for how to deal with some of the issues their children are struggling with.

In Bring Them Closer, author Connie Jakab shares her own experiences with her son, who went from being hospitalized due to suicidal threats at the tender age of eight, to overcoming his anxiety and depression.

She digs deeper into questions like:

• What does the idea “you never send the hurting away; you bring them closer” really look like?
• How do we create a connection with our children, so they live healed and whole?
• How do we see our children free of anxiety, depression, and behavioural issues?

Bring Them Closer will provide parents with tools that can help their families deal with the challenges of parenting a child who deals with mental health difficulties as well as offer some preventive measures that can keep them from happening in the first place.

"In Bring Them Closer, Connie lets us into the world that she and her family have been living in, and how far they’ve come in their journey through mental health and healing. Now she wants their journey to help others and change how we view our approach to mental health and strengthening our families. While there’s no quick-fix, one-size-fits-all approach, I’m convinced that the stories and principles in this book will be of great encouragement, and great help to those who read it. I’m privileged to recommend this book to individuals, families, and professionals alike."

— Andrew Neufeld, Registered Clinical Counsellor,
Co-Founder and Executive Director, Alongside You

"With courage and conviction, Bring Them Closer invites readers to consider that a different way to parent our children is available to us—and it’s ultimately rooted in connection. Connie Jakab vulnerably shares her own family’s story, while also providing practical tools and steps for those of us who are learning that love is always the best resource we have. This is an excellent book for parents and caregivers who are looking to pursue a different rhythm in their family and home."

— Aundi Kolber, Licensed Professional Counsellor and Author of Try Softer

"As a mom of older kids (twenty-two, twenty, and seventeen), I can certainly look back at my parenting and name all kinds of things that I did 'wrong.' In Bring Them Closer, parents can find hope and encouragement that their mistakes don’t have to be the end of the story. Connie Jakab gives a ton of very helpful advice, isn’t afraid to share her struggles, and understands the psychological principles that create safe spaces for our kids. Yes, there were things I would have done differently, and I didn’t have kids who struggled with mental health issues, but I still understood that raising strong kids who are happy, healthy contributing members of society is not a task for the fainthearted. Jakab’s book will help you understand your priorities in parenting and how being the best version of yourself will help your kids be the best version of themselves as well."

— Stephanie Reeves, Writer and Parent
www.stephreeves.wordpress.com

"As a public speaker on mental health, Connie Jakab’s compassionate call to courage informs and inspires me in my own parenting. Not only is she enlightening on how to meet our children in their greatest need, but her vulnerability as she interweaves her story into her teaching makes her a trustworthy companion while we navigate our relationships with our children. In an age when anxiety, depression, and suicide in children is at an all-time high, Bring Them Closer is a beacon of hope."

— Leah Everson (MDiv), Public Speaker and Writer

"Some books teach. Others inspire. This book does both. Bring Them Closer is a beautiful tapestry of stories that describe where all parents live—in the tension of wanting to be enough for our children and knowing we are not, even as we continue to try. As that tension gets passed down to our children, we need tools to create a safe place of belonging—for them and us. As Connie describes, “Belonging is one of those things that doesn’t come cheap. You can only give it away if you own it yourself deep down.” This book has changed me down deep, giving me the freedom to rest fully in the fact that I am not “just a parent,” but a person given the gift to change lives: giving gathered bits of grace to release fears, truths to bring comfort, and hope to those in my home. A comrade on the front lines, Connie offers encouragements to embrace the “messy” as we cherish the years gifted to us. My mothering will be changed because of this book and may we all continue to know each of us and our families are loved and held."

— Angie Ryg, M.A.Ed., Teacher, Speaker, Mother, Founder of Inspire Retreat,
Author of Clutter Free Simplicity, and contributor to
(in)courage Women’s Devotional Bible and Everbloom

"...Connie Jakab shares the brutal and beautiful reality of living with a child that rises with mental healing. Learning that healing can only occur if we pull closer to each other. Mamas and papas and caregivers of those we love, you have opened a book that is raw and will let you know you are never alone in those waiting rooms again."

— Sheli Massie, Writer, Speaker, Advocate for Social Justice and Healing

Softcover Trim Size: 6 x 9

Page Count: 168

About the Author:

Connie Jakab is the owner of The Jakab Co, a company where she is transforming home and business environments through speaking, coaching, and meaningful resources. She is the author of Bring Them Closer, Culture Rebel, and When the Dead Live. Connie is passionate about rebelling against “status quo living” and encouraging others to branch out. Renowned for her humour and real talk, she is a highly sought-after speaker.