Sesame Street addresses the opioid crisis with Muppet whose mother is in recovery

Per THR, the material in question focuses on the Muppet character Karli, previously introduced to help relate to kids who were living in the foster care system. In the clips, Karli does things like talk to a live-action girl whose parents are also dealing with addiction, talk to other characters who remind her that her parents’ problems are not her fault, and teaches kids techniques to help manage “big emotions” like anger, stress, and fear. (Elmo also gets involved, because of course he does; his dad Louie teaches him that addiction is a sickness.)

These lessons were designed by Sesame Workshop in association with therapists from the Hazelden Betty Ford Children’s Program, as part of an effort to provide support to preschool-age children, who often have few resources to help them cope with the unstable situations created when the adults in their lives are struggling with addiction. “For everything we’ve done—from military families to homelessness — it’s all about how to make children free to talk and to give parents the tools to do just that,” said Sherrie Westin, president of global impact and philanthropy for Sesame Workshop “They tend to avoid it and it’s what they need more than anything.”

All of Sesame Street’s similar outreach and support materials are available online; they include links to other resources, as well as suggestions for parents and caregivers on how to talk about these topics with their kids.

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