NOVEMBER 2019 BY LOIS MAHARG About 50 Washtenaw County movers and shakers gathered in the home of Attorney Erane C. Washington on Aug. 17 to support and learn more about NAMI Washtenaw County. This was the affiliate’s first attempt to broaden its base of supporters with an event featuring a well-known public figure — inContinue reading Fund-raiser Breaks New Ground
NOVEMBER 2019 BY LOIS MAHARG If the threat of rain kept some people home, you wouldn’t have known it. About 900 volunteers gathered on Belle Isle on Sept. 28 to do the annual 5K NAMI Walk and raise funds in support of mental health. “We’re going to do this in spite of the weather,” saidContinue reading Walk Draws Newcomers and Regulars Alike
NOVEMBER 2019 BY LOIS MAHARG Nonprofits periodically need to take stock of where they are and where they’re going, and see to the well-being of the organization itself. So amid plans for a program expansion, NAMI Washtenaw County’s board of directors met for an all-day retreat on Oct. 12 at University Commons. “This is theContinue reading Retreat Advances Agenda, Provides Food for Thought
NOVEMBER 2019 BY LOIS MAHARG This is the last newsletter I’ll be editing for NAMI Washtenaw County. I’ve worked on “Connections” for four years and now I plan to continue volunteering for NAMI in other ways. Serving as volunteer editor and reporter has been lots of fun. It’s given me a taste of NAMI’s manyContinue reading Wanted: Newsletter Editor for NAMI Washtenaw County
The National Institute of Mental Health is currently enrolling participants in 3 studies of depression. Teen Depression Study Are you a teen or parent of a teen diagnosed with depression by a pediatrician or other medical provider? The NIMH is conducting a nation-wide study of depression in teens ages 11 to 17. The study willContinue reading Sign Up to Participate in a Research Study
July 2019 By Thomas J. (Tom) Powell If someone had asked me before the convention what I thought “alliance” meant in National Alliance on Mental Illness, I would have said it had to do with our shared lived experience. The convention got me to think of alliance in another way. NAMI is an alliance ofContinue reading What Does “Alliance” Mean? Thoughts on the 2019 NAMI National Convention
APRIL 2019 BY LOIS MAHARG We didn’t start out as family, but family we became. By the end of a 3-day training in Livonia we knew each others’ stories and were united in our intention to put our training to use as teachers of a NAMI signature course, Family-to-Family. “I learned to focus on theContinue reading Family-to-Family Facilitators Prepared to Pay It Forward
APRIL 2019 BY LOIS MAHARG “I am not sick, I don’t need help.” Many of us have heard that line before. Here’s the likely context: We’re convinced that medication and/or psychotherapy will help a loved one’s mental health condition, but they want nothing to do with it. In fact, they seem to be in denialContinue reading A Leap Toward Better Communication
APRIL 2019 NAMI Washtenaw County has invited Judy Krieg to serve on the Board of Directors. Krieg works in the pharmaceutical industry selling psychiatric medications to hospitals, VA’s, Community Mental Health Centers and physicians in private practice. The part of her job she likes the most is advocating for people with mental health conditions. ToContinue reading Meet Our New Board Member
FEBRUARY 2019 BY LOIS MAHARG NAMI Washtenaw has made presentations at faith-based venues before. But 2019 began with something new: NAMI Washtenaw conducted a series of four interactive workshops called “A Christian’s Response to Mental Health Challenges” at the First United Methodist Church of Saline, where Darlene Wetzel is a member of the congregation. “DarleneContinue reading Mental Health Challenges: What Should Christians Do?
