NAMI SW WA
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Mission Statement
Mission: NAMI, the National Alliance on Mental Illness, of Southwest Washington (NAMI SW WA) is dedicated to helping all people affected by mental illness through education, support, awareness, and advocacy. Our service area is Clark, Cowlitz, Skamania, and Wahkiakum counties in Washington State with an office in Vancouver. Through our mission, we provide unique mental health services that are unavailable or inaccessible elsewhere for individuals and families affected by mental health issues through education, support, and advocacy. History: In the early 1970s, small groups of family members, nationwide, began to gather around kitchen tables searching for support and understanding of their mentally ill family member, more often than not, a son. The majority of those meeting together were moms blamed by the medical profession that their parenting skills caused their child’s schizophrenia or other mental health disorder. Groups began in Clark County in 1977 and in Cowlitz County in 1978. Our SW WA founders include Jean Lough and Virginia Cox from Clark County, and Bernie and Marcia Altman from Cowlitz County, among others. NAMI was in the beginning and continues to be a volunteer driven organization. In the late 1970s, some of these families gathered together in Madison, WI and decided to form state associations. In Washington, our founding families formed Washington Alliance on Mental Illness or WAMI. Within the next few years, the state organizations decided to form a national organization named NAMI, the National Alliance on Mental Illness. NAMI.org has become the nation’s largest grassroots organization and leading voice on mental health issues. Today, we are an association of hundreds of local affiliates, state organizations, and volunteers. We work in our communities to raise awareness and provide support and education that was not previously available to those in need. In Fall 2013, NAMI Cowlitz and NAMI Clark merged and invited Skamania County into one region so that NAMI services could be offered to a larger regional audience. Southwest Washington Behavioral Health Regional Support Network (SWBH RSN) was one of the few RSNs in the state that recognized the importance of NAMI programs and was funding them in Clark County. After the merger, SWBH RSN began funding programs for all three counties and NAMI SW WA was born. NAMI SW WA relies on financial gifts; the time and talents of many volunteers; and in-kind contributions to support our important work.
About This Cause
NAMI, the National Alliance on Mental Illness, of Southwest Washington (NAMI SW WA) is dedicated to helping all individuals and their family members affected by mental illness through education, support, awareness, and advocacy. We offer support groups, educational courses, and informational presentations for individuals, family members, youth, and companies. All offerings are free of charge to individuals needing them. FAMILY SERVICES: Family-to-Family Course: NAMI Family-to-Family is a free, 8-session educational program for family, significant others and friends of people with mental health conditions. It is a designated evidenced-based program. This means that research shows that the program significantly improves the coping and problem-solving abilities of the people closest to a person with a mental health condition. NAMI Family-to-Family is taught by NAMI-trained family members who have been there, and includes presentations, discussions and interactive exercises. Basics Course: By participating in NAMI Basics, you’ll realize that you are not alone. You’ll find support and shared understanding—compassion, reinforcement and empathy from people who truly get your situation. And don’t forget: Your experiences may also help others in the course. Together, you will all learn that recovery is a journey, and there is hope. In the Basics course, you learn: the impact mental health conditions can have on your entire family; different types of mental health care professionals, available treatment options and therapies; an overview of the public mental health care, school and juvenile justice systems and resources to help you navigate these systems; how to advocate for your child's rights at school and in health care settings; how to prepare for and respond to crisis situations (self-harm, suicide attempts, etc.); the importance of taking care of yourself; and much, much more. Family & Friends Seminar: NAMI Family & Friends is a free 90-minute or four-hour seminar that informs people who have loved ones with a mental health condition how to best support them. It’s also an opportunity to meet other people in similar situations and gain community support. The seminar is led by trained people with lived experience of supporting a family member with a mental health condition. They will walk you through the following topics: understanding diagnoses, treatment and recovery; effective communication strategies; the importance of self-care; crisis preparation strategies; and NAMI and community resources. Family Support Group: NAMI Family Support Group is a peer-led support group for any adult with a loved one who has experienced symptoms of a mental health condition. Gain insight from the challenges and successes of others facing similar experiences. NAMI’s support groups are unique because they follow a structured model, ensuring everyone has an opportunity to be heard and to get what they need. It is free of cost, designed for adult loved ones of people with mental health conditions, led by family members of people with mental health conditions, and meets weekly for 90 minutes. No specific medical therapy or treatment is endorsed. We keep everything in group confidential. INDIVIDUAL SERVICES: Peer-to-Peer Course: Peer-to-Peer is designed for individuals (18 and over) living with mental illness. It is taught by a trained team of individuals living in recovery from mental illness. The course incorporates presentations, discussion and exercises that helps you in your quest to live well with mental illness. You will learn about self-advocacy and, at the same time, create a special bond with others in the course. You will learn more about your mental illness; benefit by being around others that know what it’s like living with mental illness; and develop a Relapse Prevention Plan. This peer-led course provides a confidential place to learn from shared experiences in an environment of sincere, uncritical acceptance. No specific medication or medical therapy is endorsed or recommended. Our Core Philosophy informs the course’s approach. Participation in the course gives you an opportunity to gain tangible resources – personalized plans, strategies for potential events in the future and information – as well as a deeper understanding of your personal recovery process. Connection Recovery Support Group: NAMI Connection is a recovery support group program for adults living with mental illness. These group meetings provide a place that offers respect, understanding, encouragement, and hope. NAMI Connection groups offer a casual and relaxed approach to sharing the challenges and successes of coping with mental illness. Meets weekly for 90 minutes. It is free of cost and follows a flexible structure without an educational format, does not recommend or endorse any medication or other medical therapies, led by peers with their own lived experiences. All NAMI Support Groups are confidential – participants can share as much or as little personal information as they wish. Meetings will be guided by NAMI Connection’s Principles of Support. Prospective participants are welcome to drop-in and check the group out. Types of Connection Support Groups: Co-ed, Women only, and Co-occurring/substance use. SOCIALIZATION: Writing Group: We free-write at the beginning and then provide a writing prompt to get the creative juices flowing! Please feel free to bring writings of your own. Led by peers with their own lived experiences, they write along with you and share their thoughts. Art Group: Led by peers with a different leader every week. Project provided or bring your own to work on. Friendship, support and take home a new art project. PRESENTATIONS: See Me: SEE ME stands for Sharing Experiences and Empathy with Mental illness Education. People are recovering from mental illness and are becoming productive members of society. Our hope through SEE ME presentations is to reduce the fear people have of interacting with someone with a mental disability, whether they are a family member, a first responder, or the public. SEE ME is a mental health education program which includes a panel of people with different mental health diagnoses. This panel comes to your facility to present in their own words what it is like to live with a mental health diagnosis. A SEE ME program is 1 - 3 hours long but can be adjusted to fit the educational needs of your particular situation. SEE ME is booking sites throughout Clark, Cowlitz, and Skamania counties. If you are an employer, civic organization, public employee, faith-based organizations, or part of a first-responder team, please let us know when we might come to present to you and your colleagues. C.A.L.M. (Communicate, Assess, Listen, and Mediate): A presentation for the community about mental health crisis, de-escalation techniques and stigma. StigmaFree Company: Many people face mental health challenges in the workplace and at home, yet negative stereotypes still exist. These stereotypes and misconceptions are called stigma. Together, we can do our part in helping American workplaces thrive by eliminating stigma. Mental health is everyone’s concern and its consequences to the workplace, in particular, are tremendous. Mental health conditions are the leading cause of disability across the United States. Untreated mental health conditions cost the economy $200 billion in lost earnings each year through decreased work performance and productivity. 8 out of 10 workers with a mental health condition report that shame and stigma prevent them from seeking treatment. The family is also affected, increasing the use of leave time for family members. StigmaFree Company is NAMI’s partnership initiative to challenge, highlight and cultivate a company culture of caring and enhanced engagement around mental health. By being a StigmaFree Company and prioritizing mental health as a workplace and community priority, you will help: increase productivity and promote a healthier work environment; decrease the impact of disability; Increase retention and engagement of valued employees; and strengthen your company brand by linking to a cause that resonates with so many. FaithNet: NAMI FaithNet is a network composed of members and friends of NAMI. It was established for the purposes of facilitating the development within the faith community of a non-threatening, supportive environment for those with mental illness and their families; pointing out the value of one’s spirituality in the recovery process from mental illness and the need for spiritual strength for those who are caretakers; educating clergy and faith communities concerning mental illness; and encouraging advocacy of the faith community to bring about hope and help for all who are affected by mental illness. NAMI FaithNet is not a religious network but rather an outreach to all religious organizations. It has had significant success in doing so because all the major religions have the basic tenets of giving care and showing compassion to those in need. Ending the Silence: Presentation for schools talking about mental health and listening to young adults who struggled with their mental health while attending school, and the success they have found with support.