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Bike Ride 2010

Board of Directors

Haiti Earthquake: How You Can Help "NAMI understands the trauma experienced by victims and family members," says Mike Fitzpatrick, NAMI Executive Director.

Public Policy Alerts

bp Magazine Celebrates 5 Years!

Speak to the “80 percent”

Research Revolution

-more at NAMI.org-

WELCOME TO NAMI-BILLINGS

Billings' Voice on Mental Illness

Photo courtesy of Phil Bell

NEW EDUCATION MEETING FORMAT

We've decide to make a change in our education meetings for 2010. We've found in the past few years that attendance has diminished regardless of the topic, so we plan to reduce the number of offerings and try to present speakers and topics that will attract a broad audience.

Our theme for 2010 will be the connection between the mind and the body. We'll offer four topics:
- exercise
- resiliency and stress tolerance
- sleep problems
- nutrition

At this writing, not all of the speakers have confirmed. However, the presentations will be on the third Tuesday of March, May, September and October from 6:30-8:00 PM. Watch for speaker details in future mailings and website updates.

SUPPORT GROUP LEADERS NEEDED!

NAMI-Billings needs more Connection Support Group leaders! If you have a major mental illness, are in recovery and would like to help others in a support group, call Libby at 256-2001 for more information.

Sunday's from 3:00 PM to 4:30 PM

Thursday's from 1:00 PM to 2:30 PM

NAMI Connection is a support group for adults with mental illness. These confidential support groups meet weekly for 90 minutes and are offered at no charge.

The Billings NAMI affiliate has several support group leaders trained in the NAMI-Connection model.

Groups meet in the NAMI-Billings office. Read more about NAMI-Connection on our Education page or call the office at 256-2001.

To view a list of all our support groups, please click here.

STARTING IN MARCH!

A 12 week course is for families of adults with a mental illness.

Family to Family will begin on Wednesday, March 3, from 6:30-9:00 PM

The class will teach families about serious mental illness, medication and other forms of treatment, and effective support strategies. Family to Family provides participants with communication and problem solving techniques, coping mechanisms and the self care skills needed to deal with their loved one’s illness.

The course is offered at no charge. Call the NAMI office at 256-2001 to register.

In Our Own Voice Training

Are you an adult with a major mental illness who would like to combat stigma?

Learn how to tell your story of mental illness and recovery and join the NAMI-Billings team of speakers. The training will be April 24 and 25 in Bozeman. All expenses will be paid.

If you are interested, call Libby at 256-2001.

SUPPORT GROUP CHANGES

The mixed support group has changed to the 2nd and 4th Tuesdays, 7-8:30 PM. We’ve added a new parent’s support group: 1st and 3rd Tuesdays, 6:00-7:30. For January only, the parents support group will meet from 6:30-8:00.

Click here for all support group meeting times.

YOUTH SUPPORT GROUPS

Ages 12-14

NAMI-Billings provides weekly support groups for youth with mental illnesses in partnership with Tumbleweed. Groups meet in the NAMI-Billings office. If you have a child who might benefit from this group experience, please call Libby at 256-2001 for more information and to start the intake process. The groups are offered at no charge.

YOUTH NOW HAVE MORE MENTAL HEALTH ISSUES

A new study has found that five times as many high school and college students are dealing with anxiety and other mental health issues as youth of the same age who were studied in the Great Depression era. Read more…

You can support NAMI-Billings everytime you search the Internet or
shop on-line.

What if NAMI-Billings earned a donation every time you searched the Internet? Or how about if a percentage of every purchase you made online went to support our cause? Well, now it can!

GoodSearch.com is a new Yahoo-powered search engine that donates half its advertising revenue, about a penny per search, to the charities its users designate. Use it just as you would any search engine, get quality search results from Yahoo, and watch the donations add up!

If you download the GoodSearch – NAMI-Billings toolbar, our cause will earn money every time you shop and search online - even if you forget to go to GoodShop or GoodSearch first! Add the NAMI - Billings toolbar at http://www.goodsearch.com/toolbar/nami-billings

You can still participate without downloading the GoodSearch toolbar.

GoodShop.com is an online shopping mall which donates up to 30 percent of each purchase to your favorite cause! There are 1,000 stores including Amazon, Target, Gap, Best Buy, ebay, Expedia and Barnes & Noble who have teamed up with GoodShop and every time you place an order, you'll be supporting NAMI-Billings.

Just go to the GoodShop website and designate NAMI-Billings as your charity and then find the store you're looking for. You'll enter the merchant website from here and a percentage of your dollars will come to us. It's easy!

Thank you so much for helping. If you have any questions, contact Sharon at 256-7805 or sharon@namibillings.org.

Sign Up for our E-Newsletter

Beginning in 2010 you will be able to receive our updates directly to your in-box. This will help us save money and reduce our impact on the environment.

Thanks for helping us serve you better!

Do you have questions or need assistance with access to the public mental health system?

The Ombudsman represents the interests of Montanans seeking access to public mental health services. Read more…

THANK YOU to everyone who sponsored the NAMI-Billings' Walk Team at the NAMI MT Walk in Helena on September 27. Everyone had a great time and it was wonderful to walk together to raise money and awareness about mental illness recovery. Click here for more photos.

VOLUNTEERS NEEDED

We THANK THEM for every service moment!

AND we still have unmet needs:

Answering the phones

Coordinating groups

Please contact Libby at 256-2001 or libby@namibillings if you'd like to help.

What is NAMI?

NAMI is the National Alliance on Mental Illness, the largest grassroots organization dedicated to improving the lives of persons living with serious mental illness and their families. Founded in 1979, NAMI has become the nation's voice on mental illness, a nationwide organization with affiliates in every state and in more than 1,100 communities. The Billings affiliate was started in 1995 and has served countless local families and individuals suffering with mental illness.

What does NAMI-Billings do?

NAMI-Billings provides programs at no charge for people with mental illnesses and for the people who love them. Programs provided include:

Family to Family: a 12 week class for family members
Peer to Peer: a 9 week course for individuals with serious mental illness
Provider Education Program: a course for treatment professionals
In Our Own Voice: Speakers who have mental illnesses that have been trained to share their stories effectively
Visions For Tomorrow: an 8 week education course for family members of children with a mental illness. Children is defined as up to 21 and still living in the home.
Weekly Support Groups
Monthly Community Education presentations
One-to-One support and friendship for families and individuals affected by mental illness
Efforts to decrease the stigma of mental illness
Advocacy to create effective treatment alternatives

What is Mental Illness?

Mental illnesses are biologically based brain disorders than can severely disturb a person's ability to think, feel, and interact with others. The latest scientific research shows that mental illnesses are physical disorders of the brain. Many treatments, especially medications, are available to relieve the signs and symptoms of these illnesses.

* Schizophrenia is a thought disorder with symptoms such as hearing and seeing things that aren't really there. It affects about 1 in 100 people.

* Major Depression will strike about 8% of people in their lifetime. It may show up as extreme sadness and a loss of interest in usual activities.

* Bipolar disorder (also called manic-depressive disorder) affects 1 to 2% of people, often causing severe mood swings from depression to abnormally elevated mood.

* Obsessive-compulsive disorder, an anxiety disorder, affects about 2.5% of people. People with OCD show symptoms such as disturbing repetitive thoughts or behaviors.

* Other anxiety disorders include generalized anxiety disorder, panic disorder, and post-traumatic stress disorder. These illnesses involve feelings of extreme nervousness or embarrassment and sometimes, panic attacks.

* Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) occurs in 3 to 5% of school-age children and causes significant problems with functioning in school or at work.

All of these illnesses are considered to be serious mental illnesses. If you suspect that you or a loved one may have one of these illnesses, please see a physician for an evaluation as soon as possible.