In families with children age 12 and younger, the back-to-school season launches a noticeably stressful time. Juggling to balance work/home life, altered sleep schedules, upticks in anxiety and separation issues, and other challenges can ignite negative dynamics that disrupt the stability and behavioral health of children and their parents or primary caretakers.
Sadly, experts say that for 80% of families looking to school counselors and other sources for extra mental health support, access to care is limited because of provider shortages, location or financial barriers. In public and private schools, funding cutbacks, retirements and fewer counselors-in-training in the pipeline lead to reduced counselor hours and services.
Which is why parent company Brightline’s new BrightLife Kids coaching services are a gift. Created in partnership with CalHOPE and the Department of Health Care Services, the program’s free, personalized coaching support is available to children and families in the East Bay and throughout the state. The only requirement is that caregivers are California residents; no proof of citizenship or insurance is required.
BrightLife Kids offers weekly one-on-one virtual/video sessions, secure chat with a guaranteed 24-hour response time, an extensive 24/7 on-demand resource library and help finding high-quality therapy, should a child need specialized or in-person services beyond the scope of the program. Coaches are often bilingual (English/Spanish) and translation services are available in 17 additional languages.
Coaches also receive training in working with LGBTQ+, BIPOC and gender-diverse populations. Services are customized to suit three age categories: Infants/Toddlers (0-4), Kids (5-8) and Tweens (9-12). Although BrightLife does not provide guidance for older kids, it partners with Kooth through Soluna, a no-fee program designed for youths aged 13-25.
Enrolling in the program is easy and begins with answering a few simple questions that help intake staff understand the family’s needs and concerns. In an interview, Brando Menjivar, a senior behavioral health coach, says a key question asks, “What brings you to BrightLife Kids and what are the things you’re most worried about?”
Increasingly, stress, worry and anxiety top the list of replies, with sadness and depression quickly following. “Tied with those last two are concerns about their child’s focus and attention,” Menjivar says. “Some parents show up talking about children who are super active and have trouble focusing, and they have no idea their kids might have ADHD. Others know their child has been diagnosed with ADHD and need strategies for coping. They might come to us because they hear we can support behavioral strategies instead of immediately going the medication route.”
In 2024, having battled through the severest phase and four years of the coronavirus pandemic, Menjivar has observed an overall, rapid rise in mental health concerns. “It’s something I view daily; families have been really struggling ever since 2020,” he says. “There are caretakers’ economic concerns and pre-teens struggling with loneliness. It’s common for parents to check the box that asks about worries about their child’s school success and future.”
The impact of screen time on relationships in and beyond the family circle is a huge concern. “It’s not just social media, but online gaming is a big topic,” Menjivar says. “It’s different than in the early 2000s, because now, kids do it with their friends. For them, it’s socializing, but parents see it as excessive screen time.
He adds, “Every caregiver is looking for ways to get kids away from screens, especially because now even at school they’re on screens. As humans, we weren’t meant to carry the entire conversations of life on something in our back pockets. What is that exposure doing to our kids?”
Menjivar is 33, married and the father of two children under age 10. Having lived in both Alameda and Oakland, he is currently working to complete a master’s degree in theology/theological studies from Veritas International University while living in Tulsa. Which means he well understands the situations of the Bay Area families he coaches.
“When I was in college, I didn’t have any support,” he says. “Later, when I was a parent and had my own business, I needed support and hired a coach to ‘fix my life.’ Instead, I learned it’s lots of questioning, deep listening. I realized coaching isn’t telling people what to do, it’s coming alongside people and partnering with them for their wellbeing.”
Because every family is different and parenting philosophies vary, he sees his role as a guide, not an advice giver. “The parents are really the experts about the family, and I’m there to help them learn strategies and tools,” he says. “Unconditional positive regard is what we use in every coaching session. If we lay that foundation, we establish trust with the caregiver and with the child, create a safe place to work together and build trust.”
Every session is measured and tracked to evaluate the family’s confidence in their ability to manage their concerns and confidence in the process. “At the end of care, we can make conclusions from real data about our progress,” Menjivar says. “It’s exciting because we see caregivers are receiving the help they’re looking for, and we’re seeing improvements in kids.”
Funding for BrightLife is solid for this year and next. Menjivar says after that, the state will reassess the program’s efficacy. For that reason, he is eager to get the word out through the media, but also through partnerships with schools and other California-based community organizations in education, healthcare and the nonprofit sector. If more families and health care providers talk about BrightLife, Menjivar says, more kids and families will receive free behavioral coaching now and for many years to come.
