NAMI HelpLine

May 20, 2025

This SAMHSA sponsored webinar presented by the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) took place on Friday, May 16, 2025, from 2:00-3:00pm Eastern Time. The recording is available below.

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This webinar is a panel presentation led by NAMI’s Chief Medical Officer, Dr. Ken Duckworth. The panel includes three individuals who are currently living well in recovery with their serious mental illness. The conversation focuses on what they found helpful in achieving and maintaining their recovery. The panelists also share what they would like for behavioral health professionals to know that could help them be more patient centered in their treatment of people with serious mental illness.

Moderator:

  • Ken Duckworth, MD, Chief Medical Officer for NAMI, the National Alliance on Mental Illness. Dr. Duckworth is double board certified in adult and child and adolescent psychiatry and most recently wrote NAMI’s first book, You are Not Alone: The NAMI Guide to Navigating Mental Health, published in the fall of 2022.

Panelists:

  • Chrissy Barnard – Chrissy brings her lived experience as a Certified Peer Support Specialist at indiGO, She has been a Mental Health First Aid national trainer since June of 2019. Chrissy is also an active leader within NAMI at the local affiliate, state, and with the national level peer leadership council.
  • Tera Carter, Alumni Coordinator at Skyland Trail, a Certified Peer Specialist and National Support Group Trainer for the National Alliance on Mental Illness and also an advocate and public speaker that is passionate about training and educating on mental health and wellness.
  • Josh E. Santana is a real estate broker with a deep passion for mental health and recovery. Having faced both excessive energy and disruptive behavior as well as depression, Josh has utilized a variety of tools, from routine and music to meditation and spirituality, to regain balance and find stability.

NAMI HelpLine is available M-F, 10 a.m. – 10 p.m. ET. Call 800-950-6264,
text “NAMI” to 62640, or email. In a crisis, call or text 988 (24/7).