Supporting Fathers’ Mental Health: A Pathway to Stronger Families

Written By Diane Potts

For too long, the mental and behavioral health of men — especially fathers — has been overlooked in public systems designed to serve families. Yet we know that mental health is not just a personal issue; it’s a family and community one. When fathers struggle with depression, anxiety, trauma, or substance use, it can impact their ability to work, co-parent, and stay engaged in their children’s lives. And when they thrive, families thrive.

When we say “mental and behavioral health,” we’re talking about a wide range of challenges — from depression and anxiety to substance use and trauma-related stress — that affect how fathers think, feel, and function in daily life. Mental health refers to emotional and psychological well-being. Behavioral health includes patterns of behavior such as substance use or trauma responses that influence day-to-day functioning and long-term stability. Both are essential to understand when working with parents in the child support system.

The Hidden Toll of Unaddressed Needs

Men are less likely than women to seek help for mental health challenges, often due to stigma, lack of access, or not recognizing the symptoms. Men of color, particularly Black, Indigenous, and Latino fathers, face compounded challenges in accessing mental and behavioral health supports. Historical and ongoing systemic racism, cultural stigma around mental health, language barriers, and mistrust of institutions often block or delay their access to care. These fathers frequently carry intergenerational trauma rooted in experiences such as discrimination, disproportionate incarceration, and economic marginalization. These realities shape not only their mental health but also how they engage with systems like child support, which have historically been experienced as punitive rather than supportive.

Fathers facing economic hardship, unstable housing, past incarceration, or job loss (all common experiences among parents in the child support system) are also more likely to struggle with untreated behavioral health conditions. Add to that the pressure of meeting financial obligations and navigating complex legal systems, and the weight can become overwhelming.

When fathers are asked to share their stories, what emerges time and again is the heavy presence of trauma in their lives including childhood adversity, loss, incarceration, and systemic barriers — and how that trauma affects their mental health, relationships, and ability to consistently provide for their children. One father in the child support program explained:

“When I was asked about what’s really going on in my life, it wasn’t just about missing payments or court dates. It was about the years of pain I’ve carried — losing my own dad when I was a kid, struggling with depression, feeling stuck after losing my job, and trying to figure out how to be the father my kids deserve. I never thought anyone cared about that side of me in the child support office.”

These aren’t just stories of struggle; they are stories of resilience and hope — if given the right supports.

From Punishment to Possibility: Centering Lived Experience and Cultural Nuance

Unaddressed behavioral health needs can lead to a cycle of disconnection, unemployment, and deepening debt. For child support programs that want to strengthen families and ensure children receive consistent support, this presents both a challenge and an opportunity.

What if, instead of seeing unpaid child support solely as a compliance issue, we saw it as a signal to ask deeper questions? What barriers is this father facing? Is he struggling with depression, anxiety, or addiction? Does he have culturally relevant support? How do we honor his lived experience and cultural identity in our response?

Meaningful support for fathers must be culturally grounded. That means creating programs that honor the histories, identities, and healing traditions of Black, Indigenous, Latino, and other fathers of color. It requires breaking down language barriers, addressing systemic mistrust, and partnering with community organizations that fathers already trust.

Fathers don’t need more surveillance. They need support. We need to see the man behind the missed payments. We need to build programs shaped by fathers who have walked these paths by compensating and hiring them, not just taking and using token quotes about their experiences. 

Integrating fathers with lived experience into leadership and program design is essential for creating effective and respectful supports. When fathers who have navigated these systems are at the table — guiding policy, designing services, and mentoring peers — programs become more responsive, culturally grounded, and better able to break down barriers of mistrust.

Child Support Programs as a Gateway to Support

Child support programs are uniquely positioned to be part of the solution. Every day, we engage with fathers who are doing their best even in the face of serious obstacles. By integrating behavioral health into our work, we can create systems that help families heal and grow stronger.

Here are a few practical ways to get started:

  • Screening and Referral: Embed mental health screening into intake and case management processes. Train frontline staff to recognize signs of distress and offer warm handoffs to counseling, peer support, or treatment services including culturally specific providers.

  • Partnerships with Local Providers: Collaborate with community mental health centers, substance use providers, fatherhood initiatives, and culturally grounded healing organizations to meet fathers where they are emotionally, culturally, and geographically.

  • Reducing Barriers: Modify enforcement practices such as driver’s license suspensions or incarceration, that may worsen mental health especially for fathers already engaged in services. Provide simple administrative or judicial processes that emphasize problem-solving and support over punishment. 

  • Elevating Father Engagement: Normalize help-seeking and father-focused support. Include fathers’ voices in program design — not just as quotes, but as co-creators, compensated experts, and leaders. Share stories of strength, healing, and resilience to shift culture and reduce stigma.

Using Title IV-D Funds to Support Fathers’ Mental Health

Some might ask: can child support programs actually do this? The answer is yes — within the structure of Title IV-D.

Federal child support funds (Title IV-D) can be used for activities that are "necessary for the proper and efficient administration of the child support program." (42 U.S.C. § 654(29)) That includes efforts that improve outcomes, remove barriers to payment, and help parents stay engaged.

This means IV-D funds can support:

  • Training staff to identify behavioral health needs and make referrals

  • Building partnerships with behavioral health or reentry providers

  • Creating navigation or screening processes to connect fathers to care

  • Piloting innovative service models that address root causes of nonpayment

States just need to show a clear connection to program goals such as improved compliance, family engagement, or reduced arrears and consult with federal partners to ensure alignment with federal rules. Agencies can also braid IV-D funding with Medicaid, TANF, fatherhood grants, or court system funding to extend their reach.

A Healthier Future for Fathers and Families

Investing in fathers’ mental and behavioral health is not a detour from our mission — it’s central to it. When we support fathers in healing and stability, we lay the foundation for stronger financial support, deeper parental engagement, and better outcomes for children.

At its best, the child support program is about more than just money. It’s about family. It’s about fairness. It’s about giving every parent, including dads, the tools they need to show up for their kids.

This work matters because fatherhood and mental health are deeply interconnected and ignoring that is a form of systemic neglect.

“Mental health isn’t a detour from parenting. It’s part of the path.”

Let’s not miss the opportunity to be part of the mental health movement and make our systems more responsive, effective and humane. Because when fathers are well, families are well — and so is our future.

Call to Action
If you work in child support or related family services, consider how your program can better identify and address fathers’ behavioral health needs. Explore partnerships, pilot innovative approaches, and create space for lived experience leadership. Together, we can build stronger systems that support fathers — and through them, strengthen families and communities.

Resources to Learn More and Get Started


CCSP would like to extend heartfelt thanks to the fathers, advocates, and colleagues who shared their experiences, insights, and wisdom to help shape this piece. Your voices remind us why this work matters — not just in policy, but in real lives. This blog reflects your courage, resilience, and vision for a more just and compassionate system. We are grateful to walk alongside you on this journey toward stronger families and healthier communities.

About the Center for Child Support Policy

The Center for Child Support Policy (CCSP) is a nonpartisan nonprofit organization dedicated to advancing child support laws and practices that put children and families first. We advocate for common-sense, evidence-based reforms that promote economic stability, parental engagement, and fairness—because every child deserves support. Follow us on LinkedIn at: https://www.linkedin.com/company/child-support-policy/


Diane Potts
Next

Child Support Policies that Support Fathers Benefit Children and Families