Peaky Parents / Kactus Kids - formerly known as Your Child Freedom Programme (YCFF) and other previous names - Child anxiety programme

[Daaxy]

My son was showing signs of anxiety and I was looking for help for him. I came across an ad on Facebook - Kids Anxiety Disorder Solutions. I watched an hour long webinar and then had a lengthy telephone appointment - this was the point that Peaky Parents was introduced.. The programme comes very close to guaranteeing that your child will be cured within around 8 weeks. it costs either £2500 or £5500 depending on the level of support your child needs. Some aspects of the engagement/sales process with Peaky Parents made me feel uncomfortable - I wanted to do some research on the company before signing up. I came across the link referred to at the start of the thread which has lots of views and information about YCFF, now Peaky Parents.

I would not have come across this information if at the time I had just been researching Peaky Parents. I do not know the reason for the name change.

Radio 4, File on 4, is broadcasting a programme on 21/9/21 at 8pm called Mental Health Profiteers - based on this organisation I believe.

If you are thinking of signing up with Peaky Parents I would suggest you look at the YCFF thread before making a decision.

Concerns expressed about Peaky Parents on the YCFF link include:-

high pressure selling to vulnerable people - specific aim to create a 'marketing machine' to sell this online programme

encouraging vulnerable parents to put themselves under financial pressure to raise funds for the programme

bold statements, approaching a guarantee, that the programme will work, with no evidence to back this up

blaming parents for the programme not succeeding for their child
lack of qualifications held within the organisation

young people giving personal video reviews

lack of professionalism - emotive language designed evoke guilt

criticism of other professional services

no regulation

What is the alternative??? There is none! My child was referred to Camhs nearly a year ago & nothing. There is no help! The NHS is a mess. Think about £40 for 1 hour a week counselling, you get as many sessions as your child needs being mentored with this programme, one to one support constantly for the whole family & life time support until your child is better!!! People don’t need qualifications to counsel or treat anxiety. My son actually said the one to one support he is getting on the programme is better than any support he’s had with any medical professional!!! Just because the programme didn’t work for you doesn’t mean you have the right to slam it!!!!!

@ConcernedObserver 'long term' has nothing to do with the name of the company if what they do stays the same. In fact the changes we have seen are the positive development of the company in order to adapt to and meet the needs of its customers. Yes customers, we pay for it.

As I mentioned before, as it is not free as not on the NHS, we pay for it and this may be a struggle for many of us but that is exactly the position people are in everywhere else in the world with any sort of help or treatments.

@Ameliaclaire1978

“People don’t need qualifications to counsel or treat anxiety.”

Evidently. No qualifications needed in order to experiment with ‘treating’ mental health issues in children. Shocking, isn’t it. Maybe the more exposure this gets, some legislation or regulations might get put into place.

It had all gone very quiet on here regarding this subject until a number of new posters started to appear today. I guess it helps to keep the issue in the public eye.

@ConcernedObserver you come across as quite bullying in some of your posts.

"It had all gone very quiet on here regarding this subject until a number of new posters started to appear today. I guess it helps to keep the issue in the public eye."

Yes hopefully in a more positive light as you are sounding a bit like a broken record.

I think its really difficult when dealing with a child with Anxiety to get the right help for your child or your family. Every person has to make their own decision.
We use the programme and have been doing so since May, its made a difference to my child and we can see the changes. There is still a way to go but we have the support we need on a daily basis as parents and my child is supported twice weekly with his own mentor. I broke down the cost of all this support using private therapists and the costs were almost the same plus organising this level of support through private therapists is virtually impossible.
I agree the BBC4 programme was one sided and never took into account the success stories. But I've found this before with other news articles - they will portray the story however they want and its not always fair.
We've waited 18mths to get any support via the NHS and only now have they been in contact which is too little too late. Recently I found a council run course which focused more on aggression but was free of charge, many of the approaches they suggest to deal with troubled children are the same as the programme we're on. However the programme is there almost every day to support you and not just 1 hour a week.

You have to make your own decisions in life - what's right for one wont fit another. However its right for us and if we loose this support through key board warriors I'm not sure what other avenue we'll have left.
So please leave the programme alone as some of us are benefitting.

I'm a dad with first hand experience of the program. In response to the list in the first post:

I regularly join in the dads group and continue to witness very rapid changes in kids/parents behaviour and their associated anxiety. Some of the underlying causes are tackled head on from the very first week though individual and group sessions, alongside the modules. Everyone engaged in the program makes progress. It takes as long as it takes... Quite rightly they celebrate the kids that transform quickly... For those where it takes longer Sam, Darren, mentors,etc don't just say, the advice and support carries on for as long as required! Personally I feel the course and all the group work is money very well spent, no regrets. They are genuine, kind, extremely knowledgeable people who want to help. We couldn't get all the money upfront so we paid off in instalments. I was comfortable with the salesy aspect; they have a great product and need to get it out to as many parents as they can as far as I'm concerned... Genuinely feel they've been misrepresented ☺️

For one thing anxiety is not a mental health issue, its physical!! Something you learn very quickly in the program... They don't claim to be mental health professionals in the conventional sense, which is very refreshing if you ask me... Not every kid needs to be labelled or filled with drugs. If I felt pressure it was not because of their so called marketing machine, it was the sudden realisation that this program was what I needed to help my kid and that it would take a lot of hard work and honesty to make it happen.

"Lack of qualifications?" Many of those involved are ex-NHS and have had personal experience of they program. The guidance and support they have given me and my family is all I care about, a shiney piece of paper with a mark on it is irrelevant...

"blaming parents for the programme not succeeding" This statement is so unhelpful. Of course there are a plethora of reasons/triggers why a kid might become anxious... However, after a couple of months involved in the program, it is painfully obvious much of the kids anxiety is sustained by unhelpful patterns of behaviour exhibited by the ones that love them most. Deal with it!

"Young people giving personal video reviews" How awesome that kids are so involved in the program? They are articulate and brave and could shows the adults a thing or two about how to deal with anxiety.

"Emotive" I'm am grateful that the staff are so passionate about the program... Otherwise I wouldn't have had the guts to get on with it, which as you can tell ☺️ I'm glad we did.

"Criticism of other professional services" Just like this open forum, what's wrong with criticism? Nothing. We have to face the facts that kids aren't going to be made better by filling them with drugs or labelling them or institutionalising them. Unfortunately many professional services do this.

"no regulation" For me this translates to unspoilt, new, innovative, honesty.

Thanks for reading,
Dad grateful for the office impact this program has had on my son x

I agree. If we had paid a sum of money & had nothing to show for it, I would understand. However, my family feel very much supported. The medical professionals will treat anxiety & not solve the root cause. I have suffered debilitating anxiety for over 30 years, I am only starting to see how my negative cycle was affecting my children. My son actually commented that he saw a positive change in me.

Sorry, meant to say positive impact not office impact☺️

@D0rsetDad hear hear! Thank you. Ditto to everything you said. This is also our experience as parents too.

I did not feel it was a hard sell at all. I actually asked Martin to give me a call back as I was unsure & wanted to think about it overnight. Furthermore, I am from a sales background & yes I was skeptical at the start, but that is a natural reaction. I didn't have to pay any lump sum upfront either & I pay it off weekly. I just feel we need some more positivity, as the BBC programme was definitely only one-sided.

I came across YCFF by accident after waiting 2 years for CAMHS which sadly had not proven effective and I was left with a suffering child and no help. I was not pressured at all during the initial call and spoke to a very kind lady who explained the science behind the program. I was impressed both with the professionalism of the company the passion of their staff (without exception). In my experience there was no hard sell; just an assessment of my child’s symptoms and whether they thought they could help.

I decided to try it - despite the steep cost. Although initially I felt the cost was high, once in the program I realised why.

1. First a huge number of hours are dedicate to your family on a one to one basis.

Initially my daughter had 3 sessions a week for about 6 weeks followed by 2 a week for as long as she needed it - all these with her own personal mentor. Her mentor was young and experienced and quickly created a rapport with my teenage child - despite my daughter’s absolute reluctance to enter the program.

I started with my own mentor meeting 3 x a week. She was a recovered anxiety sufferer and only a few years older than my daughter. She was amazing and acted as my “translator” explaining why my daughter reacted in certain ways and how I might respond to minimise her anxiety. The adult format changed during our program to adult drop-in sessions. I was initially hugely skeptical about these 3 x a week 1-1.5 hour sessions and “airing our issues in public” but I was proved completely wrong. These were hugely effective and highly valuable. You learnt a huge amount more from all the other parents and always felt supported and encouraged. It felt amazing to know you were not alone struggling with all the issues surrounding anxiety in our children (self harm, anorexia, isolation, OCD etc). I feel these sessions were critical to the success of the program for my family. As an aside my experience of those drop ins was that we had all tried all the obvious options to help our anxious children and felt at the end of the line. Peaky parents really helped.

1. In addition to this “face to face” work there is a massive library of videos explaining the science of anxiety and how to manage it. There is a library for adults and one for children. There are also daily videos as well as ongoing access to the mentors after the program for as long as needed.

I won’t go into the process in detail except to say that it is highly innovative and creative, providing the children with accessible ways of managing their anxiety that I have not seen in the 3 years of trying to find help for my daughter. I was amazed and impressed, when a few weeks into the program, my daughter (reluctant and dismissive as any teenager can be) used the process she had learnt, without even realising it, and diffused an inflammatory sibling situation very calmly and sensibly.

It is easy when in a dire situation at home with anxious children, to be fearful. A lot of Sam’s process is about teaching the parents and calming them down. Calm parents automatically lower the levels of anxiety at home and the positive effects are amazing on all the family. It is a hard truth though that you have contributed to your child’s issues by your behaviour, however well meant, and some parents may not be ready to hear that. Sam is evangelical about what she does. This means she will tell it as she sees it and this too can surprise people in this world of “likes” as currency. However, this passion and commitment by Sam and all her staff makes this program unique and extraordinary and I feel lucky that my family has benefitted from it. My daughter has not had a panic attack for 5 months. To my mind that is a great start to her journey out of anxiety and was worth every penny.

Whilst it is easy to look at these “therapies” as profiteering on the vulnerable there are things to consider and I believe many have already alluded to them - First, the NHS cannot cope with the demand. For the wait on average to be 2+ years is failing our young, affecting their education, self esteem and their futures. Peaky Parents offers hope in a timely manner that is not available through the NHS. Secondly, to run the professional highly focused and one to one service YCFF/Peaky Parents takes teams of dedicated professionals. This is expensive. Whilst it is easy to see a high price tag and assume profiteering - it is important to see what services are being given. A clinical psychologist where I live is £90-160/ hour. YCFF mentors see your child 3x a week until their symptoms improve and 2 x a week until they are no longer suffering from anxiety. Parents have permanent access to the drop ins and the online portals. Sam and the team genuinely care for their clients and want the best for them. If, as has been mentioned in some posts, we sound like “puppets” it is not because we have been told what to write but because we have experienced the positive effects of this company and their amazing staff and it only seems fair that this also gets a good airing.
I have no affiliation to Peaky Parents other than as a client whose child has finished the program and whose symptoms have dramatically improved where nothing else (clinical psychologists, 8 years of NHS paediatrician or CAMHS) did. I recommend, like others have said, searching for what works for you and your children, but can only say that Sam and her team made the light at end of the long dark tunnel come much sooner than I could have imagined. Good luck to all those in search of a solution to their children’s anxiety.

After years of unbearable suffering my son is now well on his way to recovery from anxiety following the programme run by Sam. I'm sorry it hasn't worked for some but it has been worth every penny to me and my family. It is a very different approach to the years of counselling and therapy that we endured previously but it is working for us. The team and mentors have been amazing and the support you get is second to none. Its not an easy ride by any means but the reward of seeing a happy, confident child is priceless.

Wow it's amazing how many brand new posters have registered with Mumsnet in the last 24 hours just to post positive reviews of this disgraced company

Not suspicious at all

@GreatestHits how has it been disgraced?? These posts are from people who have first hand experience of the company, not a disgruntled customer who is just trying to bring it down because it didn't suit them. A comment like that is just trying to belittle other people's views because they differ from your own.

Greatest Hits -the fact that some of us have been motivated a) to join Mumsnet and b) to take the time to describe our experiences with Peaky Parents is not really suspicious but only represents how much some of us value this company and the work they have done for our children. As people mostly enjoy using such platforms to denigrate people, goods or services all this positivity may stand out like a sore thumb but is just honest parents giving their views.

honest parents giving their views

Sure thing. And I was born yesterday.

I'm with you Greatest. Incredibly lengthy and detailed reviews from multiple posters with zero posting history. I hope it does work for you and your kids, I really do, but I am concerned about these posts and will be reporting them (with apologies to the OPs because this could have been an interesting thread)

@GreatestHits

honest parents giving their views

Sure thing. And I was born yesterday.

.. and another belittling comment.

Maybe some of us generally have better things to fill our time with, like helping our child to recover from anxiety. We have decided to stand up for what we believe in that's why there are new posters.

@Igmum

I'm with you Greatest. Incredibly lengthy and detailed reviews from multiple posters with zero posting history. I hope it does work for you and your kids, I really do, but I am concerned about these posts and will be reporting them (with apologies to the OPs because this could have been an interesting thread)

Reporting honest people giving honest opinions??? This is why we don't usually bother with mumsnet! Now we are standing up for what WE believe you are questioning the length of the posts. Well anxiety and its recovery is a very complex and individual thing. If you don't want to find out more don't read them ...

@GreatestHits no not suspicious at all, just clients (ordinary mums and dads) wanting to ensure that our kids stay supported, and importantly wanting to put the other side of a shockingly unbalanced witch-hunt.

This is why we don't usually bother with mumsnet! Now we are standing up for what WE believe you are questioning the length of the posts

Is this a royal we?

Or are you speaking for all the brand new members on this thread...possibly because you're all actually the same person?

@GreatestHits

This is why we don't usually bother with mumsnet! Now we are standing up for what WE believe you are questioning the length of the posts

Is this a royal we?

Or are you speaking for all the brand new members on this thread...possibly because you're all actually the same person?

... another belittling comment

Figure of speech, turn of phrase, whatever. I used the word we 🤷🏼‍♀️

If "we" were all the same person I would be saying "I"

I used we because some of us on here clearly have similar opinions but next time I won't assume that, I will use "I"

As a parent of a child who suffers anxiety and has subscribed to Peaky Parents to help them overcome this debilitating condition I feel compelled to add to this thread (at the risk of being labelled by @GoodButNaughty as one of Sam’s cheerleading squad).
I, like @Daaxy, watched the hour long webinar and then went through a lengthy telephone appointment. Yes, there was a lot of emotive language used but let’s face it, it’s a pretty emotive topic if you have a child that suffers with anxiety. When hit with the cost at the end of the call it raised a few eyebrows I have to say. Having had some time to reflect upon what was said, carry out a bit of due diligence and understand the journey we had been on up until that point we felt it was worth trying. We had some savings and even if there was only the slightest chance that our child could recover from this insidious condition it was worth it.
As it happens this program is working for us and more importantly our child. The support given and the knowledge imparted by the Peaky Parents Team has not ceased and nor will it unless, of course, those here appear determined to denigrate the company and its owners get their way and it ceases to exist!
@GoodButNaughty I note that you are a significant contributor to this and previous threads but fail to understand why you feel so entitled to suggest that those that may have something positive to contribute about Peaky Parents should not post on it. Given, as you say, @Daaxy was clearly signposting for anyone researching this organisation. Let’s not have a one sided discussion as was the Radio 4 program referred to previously!
Peaky Parents is working for us and many others…it may not work for all and for those it did not work for they may feel hard done by but surely they can go away and say they tried? Anxiety recovery does not have ‘a one size fits all’ solution.
One thing I have learnt from the program offered by Peaky Parents is that they will do everything they can to support our family to aid the recovery of our child. All they ask in return (obviously after we have parted with our cash) is that we engage positively with the program…we are, and the change is obvious to us, it’s hard work but worth it!

@Dadoteens - I’m not saying they are not helping and supporting people however the points I raised (on the other thread??) are still valid and I believe these points need to be addressed This is my motivation and aim; to improve not to shut down or cease the service.

Not sure how else I can state this point?!?