National Alliance on Mental Illness Course Offered for Families

"Family-to-Family," a free, 12-session family education course provided by the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI), will be offered in Vernon by NAMI Sussex, beginning Thursday, September 15. The course is provided to support families, partners, and friends of individuals with mental illness. Course participants gain up-to-date information on mental health conditions and how they affect the brain.
The course teaches participants how to manage crises and solve problems, how to communicate without triggering angry reactions from their loved one, how to effectively advocate for their family member, as well as how to manage their own stress. Crucial information about and how to find and utilize local mental health supports and services is provided.
Family-to-Family is listed on the National Registry of Evidence-Based Programs and Practices.
The course is taught by volunteer NAMI-trained family members who have experienced firsthand what it is like to have a loved one struggling with a mental health challenge. Participants not only gain critical information and strategies for taking care of their loved one, they learn that there is hope for recovery.
Perhaps most importantly, course participants learn that they are not alone. The group setting of NAMI Family-to-Family provides mutual support, and participants experience compassion and reinforcement from people who truly understand. Confidentiality is always respected.
The illnesses covered in the course include major depression; bipolar disorder; schizophrenia; schizoaffective disorder; borderline personality disorder; anxiety disorders, including panic disorder, post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), and obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD); and co-occurring brain disorders and addictive behaviors. Current evidence-based treatments and therapies, including medications and side effects, are presented and discussed.
The comprehensive twelve-session course will be held Thursday evenings September 15 through December 8 from 6:30-9:00 p.m. at St. Francis de Sales Church, 614 County Highway 517, Vernon, N.J. Anyone interested should call Triscia at 973-769-4838 or Nancy at 973-862-0102 as soon as possible. The course is limited to twenty participants. Pre-registration by phone is required.