Changes coming up at NAMI WC!

Beginning on February 21, our support groups on the THIRD TUESDAY OF THE MONTH for both consumers (those with a mental health diagnosis) and family members/caregivers from 6 – 7:30 pm (groups held separately) will no longer be followed by an education program.

Beginning on Tuesday, March 6 we will have an education program/general meeting only on the FIRST TUESDAY OF THE MONTH from 6 – 7 pm.

The new ongoing schedule will be:

Third Tuesday, Feb. 21 – 6pm – 7:30 pm – Support groups only

First Tuesday, March 6 – 6pm – 7 pm – Education program/general meeting only. Speaker: Sara Cranford of Our Voice on domestic violence and sexual trauma

Third Tuesday, March 20 – 6pm-7:30 pm – Support groups only

First Tuesday, April 3 – 6pm – 7 pm – Education program/general meeting only. Speaker: Leslie Gaidi, M.A., LP on housing in the Asheville/Buncombe area

Third Tuesday, April 17 – 6pm – 7:30 pm – Support groups only

And so on………………

ALL OTHER SUPPORT GROUP SCHEDULES REMAIN THE SAME:

First Saturday of each month 10 am – 11:30 pm – Consumer and family/caregiver support groups

Second and fourth Mondays 11 am – 12:30 pm – Consumer only support group

All groups and meetings are held at 356 Biltmore Avenue, Suite 207, second floor. We are located next to the St. Joseph Hospital campus of Mission Hospital. Please call 828-505-7353 or email us at namiwnc@yahoo.com if you have questions.

The full support group schedule through June appears on our website support group page.

The nationally recognized NAMI Peer to Peer course will be offered in Franklin beginning Tuesday, March 13, 7-9p.m. This is a 10 week course designed for adults living with mental illness such as depression, bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, PTSD and others. It is taught by trained NAMI peer mentors in a relaxed, confidential setting. There is no charge but pre-registration is required. Class size is limited. For more information and to register contact Cindy (828) 524-0468 or Hank (828) 369-3490.

UPCOMING TRAININGS

February 11, 2012 – Parents and Teachers as Allies – Raleigh NC

March 23-25, 2012 – Family-to-Family Teacher Training – *Eastern NC
NAMI Basics Teacher Training

April 13-15, 2012 – Peer-to-Peer Mentor Training – *Eastern NC
Support Group Facilitator Training

* These training sites can change if a large amount of interest is from a different part of the state

EVENTS/CLASSES

* Weekly talks to consumers at Neil Dobbins Crisis Stabilization Unit and Detox Facility

* Monthly talks to consumers at the Julian F. Keith Alcohol and Drug Treatment Center

EXPRESS YOURSELF!

*  To submit a poem or short story for publication on our website, please click on the Express Yourself! page at the top of this page for submission requirements. We want to hear from you!

SUPPORT GROUPS

* Please go to the Support Group page for a complete schedule of support groups and meetings.

Emergency numbers:

North Carolina Voice on Mental Illness Helpline – 1-800-451-9682 Monday – Friday 830 am – 5 pm. After hours email: mail@naminc.org.

Suicide Helpline – 1-800-273-TALK (8255) – 24 hours/7 days

Western Highlands Network Access Line – 828-225-2800 Monday – Friday 8 am – 5 pm.  After hours: 1-800-951-3792. Western Highland is the Local Management Entity which manages mental health, substance abuse, and intellectual/developmental disabilities services in Buncombe, Yancey, Henderson, Translyvania, Rutherford, Polk, Mitchell and Madison counties in western North Carolina.

On October 25, 2011 a very special event will take place here in Asheville. We invite you to join us.

Tracey Turner, NAMI Western Carolina board member, will present THE EMOTION PROJECT. Here is Tracey’s own description of the Project:

“It is a powerful, dimensional presentation, often causing tears and, almost always, causing the audience to reflect on their own emotions and circumstances in their lives.

I give a talk about my history with alcoholism and mental illness, how the two intertwine and how they have impacted success and dire failure in my life. I then move on to individual stuffed and embellished bears which represent a specific emotion, expressed entirely as mine but leaving and encouraging room for the audience’s interpretation of their reflected emotions. The bears are not teddy bears but rage, joy, grief, self love and other emotions. There are 32 bears in the Project. In the end, it is a story of more success than failure. Maintained mental health versus untreated mental illness. It is a story of recovery.”

Tracey has presented at NAMI North Carolina, the National Crisis Intervention Training Conference (CIT), local colleges and at various NAMI affiliates.

Comments:

“Not only do I identify with my son’s emotions and have a more intense understanding, I discovered some of my emotions. Your presentation is dynamic!”  – NAMI member and parent of a child with mental illness

“I consider The Emotion Project to be one of the most powerful presentations on any subject I’ve ever attended. In fact, I was so impressed that, in my capacity as director of communications at A-B Tech, I arranged for her to present it at our college. Like Tracey’s, my connection to mental illness is a long-standing and personal one. In 1986, my brother, then 22, committed suicide after suffering from schizophrenia for six years. Those six years were among the most traumatic of my life, and although it makes me ashamed to admit, among the times when I have shown the least understanding to another human being. How I could have benefited from the insight I gained through Tracey’s presentation!”  Mona Cornwell

Please join us on Tuesday, October 25 , 6 – 7 pm at the Mountain Area Health Education Center’s (MAHEC) new facility at 121 Hendersonville Road behind the Doubletree Hotel and TGIF’s. Requested donation: $10. A light buffet will follow. For more details, call 828-505-7353, email namiwnc@yahoo.com or go to The Emotion Project website at www.theemotionproject.org.

Sixteen new CONNECTION support group facilitators from all over North Carolina came to Asheville for an intensive three-day training September 30 – October 2. CONNECTION is our support group for those with a mental health diagnosis. All of our new facilitators are peers who have experienced their own life difficulties with mental health issues. This is what makes CONNECTION such a powerful tool for those needing to get out of the house and get extra support in a safe, non-judgmental setting. All CONNECTION groups are 90 minutes and are free of charge. Please go to our Support Group page for the full schedule.

Congratulations to Gail, Monica, Kevin, Jane, Sam, Justin, Jesse, Sheila, Karen, Lucy, Andy, Jeff, Diana, Jonathan, Greg and Ren!

NAMI Western Carolina, an affiliate of the National Alliance on Mental Illness, (NAMI) will sponsor a free 12-week NAMI Family-to-Family class for families of an individual with a severe mental illness beginning Monday, August 15 from 6 to 8:30 pm in Asheville.  Western Highlands Network funds this education that helps caregivers understand and support people with serious mental illness while maintaining their own well-being.

Current facts abut schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, anxiety disorders and co-occurring addictions are covered in this program that has graduated over 115,00 family members nationwide. NAMI Family-to-Family includes coping skills, handling a crisis and relapse, communication techniques, problem solving, community resources, rehabilitation, advocacy, and fighting stigma and discrimination.

The class plays a key role in NAMI’s mission to improve the lives of all those affected by mental illness through advocacy, support and education. Because the class size is limited, early registration is required. Call 828-707-2937 or email BKinschner@aol.com for information.

Thanks to a donation from Charlotte Street Computers we now have a computer with Internet connection for the use of consumers and family members who wish to check email or do research on volunteer jobs, paying jobs or topics related to mental health. Time will be limited to one hour. NEW! If you would like to learn the basics of the Internet, Google and email, free one-on-one lessons will be available beginning in May on Thursday afternoons between 1 and 4 pm. Classes will be one hour in length. You must book in advance. Get over your fear of computers! It’s fun and easy. Call 505-7353 to reserve a computer or to book a class.

Our video room has also opened. We have videos on mental health as well as the film “Canvas”. To reserve a time or if you have any appropriate videos that you would like to donate, please call our office. OR just want to get out of the house? Stop by a video rental store and bring your video to watch at our office. Bring your own popcorn!

A book and VHS/DVD checkout library is also available for NAMI members. Just come in and sign out your choices. Books and videos may be checked out for one month.

Please contact us if  you would care to donate books or to make a donation specifically to purchase books for the  library.