CUMMING — A free educational program for family and friends of adults living with mental illness will begin next week in Forsyth County. The National Alliance on Mental Illness, or NAMI, will offer its Family-to-Family Program at 6:30 p.m. Monday in the Forsyth United Way Office, 240 Elm St. The 12-week session will continue at the same time on Monday nights through April 21. Linda Fitzwater with the Forsyth, Dawson and Lumpkin NAMI chapter, said the course is designed to help all family members and friends “understand and support their loved one living with mental illness, while maintaining their own well-being.”“Thousands of families describe the program as life-changing,” she said, in a statement. “The program is taught by trained teachers who are also family members and know what it is like to have a loved one living with mental illness.” The course includes information on illness such as schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, major depression and other mental health issues. Anyone interested in attending the Family-to-Family Program is asked to register at www.namifdl.org or by emailing namifdlga@gmail.com. They can also call (678) 947-6156 to learn more. According to information from the organization, NAMI is the nation’s largest grassroots mental health organization dedicated to building better lives for millions of Americans affected by mental illness. Forsyth, Dawson and Lumpkin NAMI chapter members work to raise awareness and provide essential education, advocacy and to support group programs for people in the area living with mental illness and their loved ones.
CUMMING — A free educational program for family and friends of adults living with mental illness will begin next week in Forsyth County. The National Alliance on Mental Illness, or NAMI, will offer its Family-to-Family Program at 6:30 p.m. Monday in the Forsyth United Way Office, 240 Elm St. The 12-week session will continue at the same time on Monday nights through April 21. Linda Fitzwater with the Forsyth, Dawson and Lumpkin NAMI chapter, said the course is designed to help all family members and friends “understand and support their loved one living with mental illness, while maintaining their own well-being.”“Thousands of families describe the program as life-changing,” she said, in a statement. “The program is taught by trained teachers who are also family members and know what it is like to have a loved one living with mental illness.” The course includes information on illness such as schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, major depression and other mental health issues. Anyone interested in attending the Family-to-Family Program is asked to register at www.namifdl.org or by emailing namifdlga@gmail.com. They can also call (678) 947-6156 to learn more. According to information from the organization, NAMI is the nation’s largest grassroots mental health organization dedicated to building better lives for millions of Americans affected by mental illness. Forsyth, Dawson and Lumpkin NAMI chapter members work to raise awareness and provide essential education, advocacy and to support group programs for people in the area living with mental illness and their loved ones.