NAMI offering free family education program

    DOVER-FOXCROFT — The National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI), Maine will sponsor a free Family-to-Family Education Program specifically designed for families of people diagnosed with mental illness.

    The 12-week series of classes will be offered in Dover-Foxcroft beginning on Tuesday, May 7 from 4 to 6:30 p.m. at the Morton Avenue Community Room. Pre-registration is required. For more information or to enroll call Debbie at 564-2393 or Beth at 924-7903. 
    The course will cover information about schizophrenia, the mood disorders (bipolar disorder and major depression), panic disorder, obsessive compulsive disorder and other major mental illnesses. In addition, coping skills such as handling crisis and relapse; basic information about medications; listening and communication techniques; problem-solving skills; recovery and rehabilitation; and self-care around worry and stress will be included.
    The course is designed specifically for parents, siblings, spouses, teenage and adult children and significant others of persons with severe and persistent mental illness. The curriculum has been written by an experienced family member mental health professional, and the course will be taught by NAMI family member volunteers who have taken intensive training as course instructors.  The co-teachers for the course are from the Dover-Foxcroft area.
    “This course is a wonderful experience!,” says Christine Canty Brooks, director of Peer and Family Support at NAMI Maine. “It balances education and skill-training with emotional support, self-care and empowerment. We hope families with relatives who have a mental illness will take advantage of this unique opportunity.”
    For more information you can also contact Christine at the NAMI Maine office at 1-800-464-5767 or e-mail ccantybrooks@namimaine.org. 
    NAMI, The National Alliance on Mental Illness, is the nation’s largest grassroots mental health organization dedicated to building better lives for the millions of Americans affected by mental illness.  NAMI Maine with its volunteer member affiliates, leaders and members work tirelessly to raise awareness and provide essential education, advocacy and support group programs for people in our community living with mental illness and their loved ones.