A Presentation on NAMI by Claudia Carroll

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NAMINATIONAL ALLIANCE OF MENTALL ILLNESS

• Research for Special Education Course 208
• Claudia Carroll
• Photos/Paintings by cjcarroll www.pixels.com/cjca
  rroll

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NAMINational Alliance on Mental Illness 1
in 25 Americans lives with a serious mental
health condition. https//www.nami.org/Find-
Support/Family-Members-and-Caregiverssthash.79IdY
RqX.dpuf
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Basic information about the group website,
contact information  The nations largest
grassroots mental health organization dedicated
to building better lives for the millions of
Americans affected by mental illness an
association of hundreds of local affiliates,
state organizations and volunteers who work in
your community to raise awareness and provide
support and education that was not previously
available to those in need. https//www.nami.org
/About-NAMIsthash.RTIa98Df.dpuf
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 Does the group offer local meetings/trainings/con
ferences? NAMI networks the nation with state
and local centers, workshops, and support
contacts.  

• NAMI New Mexico/ 2015 Wyoming Blvd. NE Suite E/
  Albuquerque, NM 87112 Phone [phone] Fax
  [phone] Email Address naminm_at_aol.com
  Website http//naminm.org
• Other NM locations Los Alamos AMI Los Alamos
  87544-2530 NAMI Albuquerque Albuquerque 87110
  NAMI Cibola/McKinley Gallup 87301-5518 NAMI Dona
  Ana County Las Cruces 88004-2556 NAMI
  Milan/Grants Milan 87021-2598 NAMI of Colfax
  County Raton 87740-3580 NAMI of Santa Fe Santa Fe
  87502-6423 NAMI of Southeast New Mexico Roswell
  88203-7957 NAMI Otero County Inc Hi Rls Mtn Pk
  88325-0591 NAMI San Juan County Farmington
  87401-9191 NAMI Silver City Silver City
  88062-1540 NAMI Taos Arroyo Seco 87514-0277 NAMI
  Valencia County Los Lunas 87031-0371 NAMI
  Westside, NM Rio Rancho 87174-5074 - See more at
  https//www.nami.org/Affiliate?stateNMsthash.a8b
  a7pA6.dpuf

• I

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What students/families does the group
supports (and what is the cost)?  
Nami is a national, donation supported,
educational and research organization with state
and local not-for-profit groups set up to offer
support both in person or on-line. Videos, such
as Know the Warning Signs and links such as
Where to Get Help (in your community) are
informational to any youth, young adult, teacher
or family member https//www.nami.org/Learn-More
/Know-the-Warning-Signs
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Can professionals (teachers) join (and what is
the cost)?  https//www.nami.org/Find-Support/NAMI
-Programs/NAMI-Parents-Teachers-as-Allies

• There is no cost for teachers/professionals to
  gain information and on-line support, but there
  may be some fees associated with
  presentation/workshops.
• Some staggering statistics
• 1 in 5 kids experiences a mental health
  condition, but only 20 of them actually receive
  services.
• About 50 of students ages 14 with a mental
  health condition will drop out.
• Suicide is the second-leading cause of death
  for 15-24 year olds.

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How does the group support individuals with
disabilities?  Nami reports that Mental
health conditions are common among teens and
young adults. 1 in 5 live with a mental health
conditionhalf develop the condition by age 14
and three quarters by age 24.-
https//www.nami.org/Find-Support/Teens-and-Young-
Adultssthash.sqqMRBsE.dpuf While not every
one with a disability is afflicted with mental
illness, often the disability, either when
mis-diagnosed, undetected, or simply endured by
the individual, can result in any of a number of
conditions (such as depression, changes in
behavior, withdrawal from social interactions,
changes in eating or sleeping patterns, etc.), or
the symptoms of mental/emotional illness may be
pigeon-holed into a particular learning
disability in order that students might receive
special education services, which do not,
appallingly, provide support for mental/emotional
illness per se, other than talks with school
counselors.
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Nami further suggests getting help
and, for youth, accessing what peers with
similar conditions are saying and experiencing
A mental health condition isn't your fault or
your family's faultit develops for complicated
reasons that researchers are only starting to
understand. Mental health services and supports
are available and the earlier you access them the
better. Many teens and young adults live full
lives with a mental health condition. More and
more teens and young adults are speaking out
about their experiences and connecting with
others. One such on-line site is
http//ok2talk.org/
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What resources does the group provide?

• On-line resources for individuals, family,
  educators Ex Recognizing early warning signs,
  mental health conditions and treatments, and
  wellness goals. An important fact for educators
  50 of mental health conditions begin by age 14
  and 75 of mental health conditions develop by
  age 24. https//www.nami.org/Learn-More/Mental-He
  alth-Conditionssthash.OtQNepbQ.dpuf

• Also listed on this site are such conditions,
  some of which are generally, today, considered
  learning disabilities, but may have more severe
  genetic and environmental roots, such as
  Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder Anxiety
  Disorders Autism Bipolar Disorder Borderline
  Personality Disorder Depression Dissociative
  Disorders Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (may
  result from a sports injury, a family disaster-
  and is not, as commonly supposed, only a post-war
  disorder) Obsessive-compulsive Disorder
  Schizoaffective Disorder and Schizophrenia.

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Other Nami Resources

• Locations of state-based and locations within
  states that offer support.
• Specific supports for teens through college
  years https//www.nami.org/Find-Support/Teens-and
  -Young-Adults
• Blogs, videos, chat-sites for educators, family
  members, individuals suspecting or having been
  diagnosed with a condition, peer-talks.
• (Perhaps this is one of the most important
  aspects of the Nami web site, to help those
  affected in one way or another by mental illness
  to know they are not alone.

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Personal Perspective I chose this research
due to mental illness within my family, and a
long, lonely, personal battle (now overcome)
with depression and anxiety. While Nami
is an amazing organization, evolving from a
kitchen table to a national one with both state
and within-the-state local groups, I find it is
of great value to me as an informative tool, but
of little value to my family member, who lives,
with some humor, within the locked doors of his
life created for protection perhaps, but which
keep him from experiencing success in one or more
of his natural talents, and in social encounters
which could lead to friendships and perhaps
relationship.
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• As a care-giver, as a person who is accustomed to
  overcoming, I am especially troubled with this
  status quo. However, agreeing with Namis
  recommendation that care-givers take care of
  themselves first, placing the airline oxygen mask
  on ones own face before that of another, I am
  continuing my education to qualify for further
  work with special needs students, finding
  Saturday time at the library to reformat a poetry
  manuscript, doing some sketching even though I no
  longer have space for other artwork, and
  developing websites for both my art and writing
  efforts.
• Still, nothing takes away the pain of knowing
  that someone close to you is suffering. I
  remember only the happy face of this victim of
  mental illness as a child, loving, friendly,
  reaching out to find his place in the world.
• In this, I empathize with all those who have
  children with mental illness and/or learning or
  other disabilities. For this reason I am
  grateful for the Internet, and the access we all
  have now, to such sites as Nami, and the many
  sites offering both information and support for
  those afflicted with, or families of those so
  afflicted with the variety of challenges that
  humans face.
• (A collage myself center not long after my
  mother died my daughter (artist with dyslexia),
  son, musician with mental/emotional illness).

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