Children's Needs – Parenting Capacity - Digital Education Resource ...

How mental illness, learning disability, substance misuse anddomestic violence affect parenting capacity 83 Relationships within families can be disrupted. Mental illness, learningdisability, problem drinking and drug misuse are associated with maritalbreakdown. The association is complex. The parental disorder itself, orits consequences such as the loss of a job and reduced income, may strainfamily relationships. Alternatively, mental illness, excessive drinking or drugmisuse may be a consequence of an unhappy or violent relationship. Finally,all may have a common cause, such as childhood adversity.