| In This Issue |
| Who We Are |
NAMI, the National Alliance on Mental Illness, is the nation's foremost grassroots mental health organization. We are dedicated to improving the lives of people living with serious brain disorders that cause mental illness and to improving the lives of their families. Founded in 1979, NAMI is active in all 50 states, Canada, and Mexico with over 1100 local chapters across the country. Our mission is one of education, support, self help, advocacy and research.
NAMI Barrington Area is a new NAMI chapter located in the northwest suburbs of Chicago. We are a dedicated group of people serving Barrington and nearby suburbs hoping to help you or someone you love on the path to recovery from mental illness. Call us at 847-496-1415.
About NAMI Barrington area chapter
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Shop and Socialize for the NAMI Cause
Please join us for an afternoon with NAMI Barrington Area.
Saturday, May 1, 12:00 - 4:00 p.m.
111 Grille - Barrington Ice House
200 Appleby St., Barrington
$20 ticket includes appetizers and drink
Featured products include Lia Sophia, Stella and Dot Jewelry, Mary Kay Cosmetics, KA Designz handbags, pillows & gifts, Pampered Chef cookware, Tastefully Simple gourmet foods, Chuck Horseburger birdhouses, PartyLite candles & gifts.
Tickets at the door or in advance. Call Steph for information at (847)732-2573.
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Mental Health Lobby Day Set
Wednesday, May 5 is a day for confronting your legislators. The Mental Health Summit, an umbrella group of mental health service providers and advocacy groups, including NAMI Illinois, confirms that this year's mental health lobby day will be Wednesday, May 5.
This year we'll see two simultaneous rallies, one in Chicago and one in Springfield. The Springfield rally will also include time for participants to meet their legislators in person and make the case for protecting mental health services and fixing Illinois broken budget system.
The Summit plans to provide busses to Springfield from several Chicago area locations. Call Hugh at 847-215-4104 for details.
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May Events
Saturday, May 1, 8:30 a.m. - 2:30 p.m. Barrington Area
Development Council's BADC Leadership Academy, offering training in grant writing, financial formalities for non-profits, being on a board and running a meeting, legal implications for non-profits, stating your mission and getting your message out. At the Makray Memorial Golf Club, 1010 S. Northwest Highway, Barrington. Registration required - $35 (includes continental breakfast, lunch and materials). Email or call 847-382-4357 to register.
Saturday, May 1, 12:00p.m. - 4:00p.m. Join NAMI BA for an afternoon of shopping and socializing for a cause. Featured products include Mia Sophia and Stella and Dot Jewelry, Mary Kay cosmetics, KA Designz handbags, pillows & gifts, Pampered Chef cookware, Tastefully Simple gourmet foods, Chuck Horseburger birdhouses, Party Lite candles & gifts. $20 tickets include appetizers and a drink. Tickets at the door or in advance by calling Steph at (847)732-2573.
Wednesday, May 5, time TBD. The Mental Health Summit and NAMI Illinois will sponsor 2010 Mental Health Lobby Day which includes two simultaneous rallies, one in Chicago and one in Springfield. The Springfield rally will also include time for participants to meet their legislators in person and make the case for protecting mental health services and fixing Illinois broken budget system. The Summit plans to provide busses to Springfield from several Chicago area locations. Call Hugh at 847-215-4104 for details.
Wednesday, May 5, 7 - 8:30 p.m. The Criminal Justice Action Committee commences at Alexian Center for Mental Health, 3350 Salt Creek Lane, Arlington Heights, IL -Suite #114. We will be meeting the first Wednesday of every month. If you are unable to make it, please join us next month on June 2. Questions, please call Joe Jason at (847)537-3009 or jmj2400@yahoo.com.
May 5, 12, 19 and 26, 4-5 p.m. Understanding Mental Health: four free webcasts offered by the National Council for Community Behavioral Healthcare. May 5, Understanding Depression; May 12 Understanding Anxiety Disorders; May 19 Understanding Psychosis; May 26 Understand Substance Use Disorders. Visit their website to register.
Saturday, May 8, 10 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. Five local NAMI chapters present Moviefest for Mental Health, at the Countryside Unitarian Universalist Church, 1025 N. Smith Street, Palatine. Includes the Soloist, Minds on the Edge and When Medicine Got It Wrong, all runing continuously in several rooms (so come when you wish). No charge. No reservation. Phone 847-899-1095 for information.
Monday, May 10, 7:00p.m. to 8:30p.m. NAMI CCNS hosts attorney and author L. Mark Russell speakin about Future Planning for a Son or Daughter With a Disability If You Become Incapacitated or Die. Topics include estate plans, trusts, and guardianship. Free. No registration required. At Kenton-Knox Conference Center (at NorthShore University HealthSystem). 9701 N. Knox, Skokie. For additional information call NAMI CCNS at (847) 716-2252.
Wednesday, May 12, 11:00a.m. to 1:00p.m. with lunch provided. Training on financial planning strategies tailored to the unique needs of Social Security disability beneficiaries. Service providers will learn how to help clients navigate asset limit restrictions, avoid costly mistakes, and take advantage of innovative options for saving and building assets. At Access Living, 115 W Chicago Avenue, Chicago. Free. Registration required. Contact Hannah Weinberger-Divack at hannahwd@povertylaw.org or (312) 368-1104.
Wednesday, May 26, 2010, 7:00 p.m. NAMI NW Suburban welcomes Hugh Brady, President of Barrington NAMI and Co-President of the N/NW Task Force on Supportive Housing, speaking on State and Local Updates in Mental Health: Housing and Other Support Services. Held at Alexian Brothers Center for Mental Health, 3350 Salt Creek Ln., Suite 114, Arlington Hts. No charge. No reservation. Phone 847-899-0195 for more information.
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June Events
Wednesday, June 2, 8:30a.m. - 2:30p.m. Region 1 Consumer Conference: Faces of Recovery IV: The Art of Recovery. Featuring workshops related to the arts and the Art of Recovery. $10 Registration Fee, however, no one will be excluded for lack of funds: Free for those who are homeless or living in nursing homes. At Hermann Hall Conference Center, Illinois Institute of Technology, 3241 S. Federal St., Chicago. Registration required. Contact Virginia Goldrick, Recovery Specialist, DMH-Region One at (773) 794-5680 or Virginia.Goldrick@illinois.gov
Thursday, June 3 and Friday, June 4, all day. Adler School of Professional Psychology hosts conference on the Social Determinants of Mental Health: From Awareness to Action. Registration and fee required. At the Drake Hotel in Chicago.
Monday, June 7, all day. 10th annual Golf Outing for Alexian Bros. Center for Mental Health at Makray Memorial Golf Club, in Barrington. $200per/person includes putting contest, shotgun start, eighteen holes of golf with cart, lunch, banquet dinner, and prizes. Please contact Ken Doruff at kbsdoruff@aol.com for more information.
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Area Support Groups
You may find that a support group can be very helpful, especially if you, a partner, friend or family member is going through a crisis. A very large number of groups meet in our area for consumers as well as family members and friends.
Each month, we publish a list of support groups that you can attend, generally at no charge and with no need to make a reservation. You can access that list in a printable format here.
We would also like to invite you to the groups hosted by our own chapter, NAMI Barrington Area. This month we will offer a NAMI Connections group for consumers and a family support group every Thursday at Northwest Community Hospital at 7 p.m. (call Nora at 847-899-6264 for more information). We will also hold a family support group on Monday, May 10 at the Barrington Area Library (call Mary at 847-381-6919 or Trowby at 847-382-6015). |
Family to Family Classes
by Maryrose Peters
The National Institute of Mental Health states that in any given year, about one in four adults suffer form a diagnosable mental illness and 1 in 17 of the general population deals with a severe and persistent mental illness. It is no wonder then that one of NAMI Barrington Area's most successful programs is our Family to Family education course. We have expanded to teach four 12 week sessions each year in both Barrington and Northwest Community Hospital in Arlington Heights and still the classes fill to maximum capacity.
Family to Family is a free 12-week course for family caregivers of individuals with severe mental illnesses that discusses the clinical treatment of these illnesses and teaches the knowledge and skills that family members need to cope more effectively. It balances basic education and skill training with emotional support, self care and empowerment. To date over 200,000 family members have graduated this class nationwide!
Since these illnesses are so common, it is guaranteed that you may know a family who may need this valuable information, so please help us spread the word! We now take registrations all year long, so give us a call to find out more about this program by calling Maryrose at 847-496-1415. |
Is Schizophrenia Inherited?
From the President's Desk - by Hugh Brady
I recently listened to a Teaching Company lecture by Stanford's Professor Robert Sapolsky. He asks the question, is schizophrenia caused by heredity or environment? The answer is yes on both counts.
Sapolsky makes use of a 30-year study by Semour Kety that looked at four possible combinations of schizophrenia's presence in the biological and adoptive parents of schizophrenic people. And it seems that the chance of developing schizophrenia increases whether an adoptive parent or a biological parent has the illness - although the rates are different with different combinations.
If you'd like to learn more, read Hugh's complete column for May.
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Schizophrenia from the Inside
Looking for information on mental illness? Healthyplace.com offers TV programs on various aspects of mental illness. One of the most interesting is an interview with Kristin Bell, who describes what it's like to live with schizophrenia and how she came to be able to successfully manage her symptoms.
The show also includes an interview with Ken Duckworth, the Medical Director at NAMI National, on the nature and impact of schizophrenia.
To see the interview, visit this web page and scroll down. If you find the interview is already in progress, click the "On Demand" button and you can select the video and start from the beginning.
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NAMI Founder Passes On
Harriet Shetler, one of the founders of NAMI, died recently in Wisconsin at the age of 92.
In 1977 Shetler co-founded a local support group in Madison, Wisconsin for people who had a family member with a mental illness. They named their group the Alliance for the Mentally Ill of Dane County (AMI is also French for "friend "). Around the same time similar groups were being established in other areas of the country. Then in 1979 Shetler's group hosted a conference bringing other like-minded people to Madison to discuss their common interest and investigate the possibility of forming a larger coalition.
By the end of the conference they had created the National Alliance on Mental Illness. For many years, Shetler continued an active leadership role in Wisconsin as well as in the national organization, serving on the board and in other capacities. |
Graying in a Home, Not an Institution
From the New York Times
A story of interest to any with mental illness or mental illness in the family...
Svetlana Gomelsky, 61, who has schizophrenia, is the beneficiary of one of the quietest, least-heralded social revolutions of her generation.
For the last 18 years, she has lived in group homes and apartments subsidized by the State of New York. There is no miracle here. Her schizophrenia has not gone away, nor have the voices she hears stopped, even with meds. But she is in the first generation with serious mental illness to largely escape the state hospitals.
Read more about Svetlana and others of her generation, and how they have fared.
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Mental Health Court Association Opposes Proposed Budget Cuts
Legislative Alert - by Hugh Brady
As we noted in last month's issue of News and Notes, Governor Quinn has proposed a $90 million cut in funding for community mental health services. Together with federal matching funds that the state will lose because of these cuts, the net impact will be a 40% cut in funding for community mental health programs. This is on top of deep cuts, averaging 14% to these services, in last year's budget. The Governor also proposed deep cuts in Medicaid services for people with mental illness.
The new Illinois Mental Health Court Association, made up of judges and other mental health court advocates, has sent a letter to Governor Quinn urging him not to cut mental health programs. You can help prevent these cuts by sharing the information in the letter with your State Senator and State Representative.
Read the complete text - and learn how you can help!
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Health Care Reform
What it means for people with mental illness
The health care reform bill, which President Obama signed into law on March 22, contains a number of provisions that will be of great benefit to people with mental illness, including an end to such harmful practices as exclusions for preexisting conditions and rates based on medical history, prevention from dropping people when they become sick, and a requirement to provide mental health and addiction services on the same basis as any other illness.
It is estimated that the new law will expand health care coverage to 32 million Americans who currently have no health insurance.
Learn more.
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Research Update
Is Marijuana Use Associated with Psychosis?
A recent online article by Andrew Czysewski in Med-Wire News reports on a study that examined the question of whether marijuana is associated with first episodes of psychosis.
Researcher Rodolfo Mazzoncini from the University of Verona in Italy examined the health records of 468 individuals that had been collected in a large study in the UK. The records included information on drug use and use of health care services.
The researchers found that indeed heavy use of marijuana is correlated with an increased probability of psychotic illness and an increased severity of the initial episodes of psychosis. Whether a cause or an effect is unknown, but certainly heavy marijuana use is a red flag that should not be ignored.
The research is published in the journal Acta Psychiatrica Scandinavica. Read more about its findings.
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Journeys from PADS to HOPE
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Journeys Lawn Care (847) 963-9163 x24
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Homeless Call Center Up and Running
The new homeless assistance and prevention call center for suburban Cook County continues to receive a high volume of calls.
Instead of having to call many different agencies to see if they can provide help for people who have lost their homes or who may be in danger of becoming homeless, people can call one number, explain their situation and be referred to the appropriate agency for assistance.
The toll free number is 1-877-426-6515. Please share this number with anyone you know who is homeless or in danger of losing their home.
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Volunteers Needed
Do you really mean it when you say you want to help people with mental health issues?
If so, we can use your help at NAMI Barrington Area. I want to invite you to help us support and advocate for people with brain disorders, and in so doing, help yourself. Are you willing to lend a hand? It's a wonderful experience to be involved and make a difference!
There's so much we can accomplish, but only with more good people like you pitching in. Please call Maryrose at 847-496-1415.
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Local Hospitals
With Mental Health Serivces
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| Community Mental Health Services
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Other Helpful Resources
OCD Chicago for help with Obsessive Compulsive Disorder
RX for Illinois or Partnership for Prescription Assistance for help with prescription drug costs.
Suburban Cook County Homeless Assistance and Prevention Call Center 1-877-426-6515
NAMI Help Line (agency referrals): 800-950-NAMI (6264)
The DMH Warm Line offers peer support to mental health consumers and families (MF 8-5) 866-359-7953
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| Please pass on this newsletter
We hope you'll pass this newsletter on to friends, family members or professionals who might get some useful information from it. Even though you don't know if your friend would need this valuable information and support, you never know who may have a co-worker or neighbor who would.
The best way to pass it on is to hit the 'forward email' button at the bottom of this page.
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Join NAMI
We hope you'll join NAMI and support our advocacy for the mentally ill. The cost is only $35 (adult and spouse) or $10 (for consumer). If this cost will create a financial hardship, we have a limited number of open door memberships available at a reduced fee.
If you don't wish to join right now, but you'd like to receive our free newsletter, simply use the "Join our mailing list" button in the blue column to the right. Membership form
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Emergency Numbers
Local police/ambulance: 911
State police: 847-294-4400
Crisis team, Alexian Brothers, Hoffman Estates
(24 hour): 800-432-5005
Illinois state suicide line: 800-784-2433
Ecker Center 24-hour emergency program (Elgin) 847-888-2211
More emergency numbers
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