NAMI-WM to host 12-week course on mental illnessDate: 7/10/2015 AGAWAM – The National Alliance on Mental Illness of Western Massachusetts (NAMI-WM) is offering a free 12-week course in Northampton on Saturday mornings, starting Sept. 12, for family, caregivers, and friends of adult loved ones with mental illness.
The course is designed to help caregivers understand and support their loved ones while maintaining their own wellbeing.
Pre-registration is required. Mental illnesses covered in the course include depression, anxiety disorders, bipolar disorder, posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), borderline personality disorder, and schizophrenia.
Family to Family is taught by trained facilitators who are family members of individuals living with mental illness. Facilitators provide critical information and strategies related to caregiving through presentations, discussions, and interactive exercises. More than 115,000 family members have graduated from this national program.
Participants are provided with free materials including up-to-date information on mental illnesses and their impacts on the brain, and current research on treatments and medications.
“Mental illness does not involve just one person,” NAMI-WM president Bernice Drumheller said. “Entire families are affected, and caregivers need the skills and information to obtain the best care for their loved ones while also taking care of themselves.”
Drumheller, a 13-year veteran Family to Family teacher, said, “NAMI offers help and hope to families. People who take the course describe it as life changing. It is taught by trained family caregivers who themselves have loved ones living with mental illness. They know first-hand what families face.”
For more information or to register for the course please contact the NAMI-WM office at 786-9139 or information@namiwm.org or visit the website at www.namiwm.org.
NAMI-WM, headquartered in Agawam, is an affiliate of the nation’s largest grassroots organization dedicated to improving the lives of people living with mental illness. With free support groups and educational programming, NAMI-WM advocates for access to services, treatment, supports, and research and is steadfast in its commitment to raising awareness and building a community of hope for all those in need.
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