NAMI Family Support Group
NAMI Family Support Group
Facilitator Training
NAMI 101
NAMI Family Support Group
NAMI Family Support Group
NAMI
National Alliance on Mental Illness
• Founded 1979 in Madison, Wisconsin
• Incorporated in Missouri, now with headquarters in
Arlington, Virginia
• NAMI is the nation’s largest grassroots mental health
organization dedicated to building better lives for the
millions of Americans affected by mental illness.
• 1100 Affiliates in 50 States,
Washington D.C., Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands
NAMI Family Support Group
What is the NAMI mission?
• NAMI is dedicated to the eradication of
mental illnesses and to the improvement
of the quality of life for all those whose
lives are affected by these diseases.
NAMI Family Support Group
Central Beliefs
• Mental Illnesses are illnesses like any other
• Stigma is real and has terrible consequences
• Both the individual and the family are essential to
the recovery process
• Education and support for families and people with
mental illness make substantial differences in
outcomes, recovery and resilience
• With appropriate treatment and services, people
can and do recover from mental illness
NAMI Family Support Group
Public Education and Information Activities
• NAMI’s website: www.nami.org
Receives over 7 million visitors a year
• NAMI’s Toll-free HelpLine: 1 (800) 950-6264
Hours: 10:00 a.m.-6:00 p.m. ET
Responds to over 200,000 calls, emails and
social media and postal requests each year and
is staffed by a dedicated team of volunteer
associates
NAMI Family Support Group
Public Education and Information Activities
• Mental Illness Awareness Week, held
during the first week of each October
• The Stigmabusters Network
• Unmasking Mental Illness: Science and
Research Reception
NAMI Family Support Group
Public Education and
Information Activities
NAMI Family Support Group
NAMI Family Support Group
Peer education
and support activities
for individuals
and family members
NAMI Family Support Group
NAMI Family Support Group
NAMI Family Support Group
NAMI Family Support Group
NAMI Family Support Group
Support Groups
• The NAMI Support Group model operates differently
from other, more traditional "share-and-care"
groups.
NAMI Family Support Group
NAMI Family Support Group
NAMI Family Support Group
Sincere
Uncritical
Acceptance
NAMI Family Support Group
NAMI Family Support Group
NAMI Family Support Group
NAMI Family Support Group
Advocacy
• NAMI advocates on behalf of people living
with mental illness on the federal, state,
and local levels
NAMI Family Support Group
NAMI Action Centers
 Multicultural networking groups
• African American
• American Indian and Alaskan Native
• Asian American and Pacific Islander
• Latino
• GLBT (Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual and Transgender)
NAMI Family Support Group
NAMI Action Centers
NAMI Family Support Group
How to Contact NAMI
• NAMI
3803 N. Fairfax Drive
Suite 100
Arlington VA 22203
• Phone (703) 524-7600
• Information Helpline 1-800-950-NAMI (6264)
• Education Department: namieducation@nami.org