The National Alliance on Mental Illness of Vermont (NAMI Vermont) is offering a virtual NAMI Family-to-Family education program for family members of people living with mental health conditions.
Family-to-Family is an evidence-based program that has been proven to significantly improve the coping and problem-solving abilities of all family members: parents, siblings, spouses, teenage and adult children, and significant others. This free, eight-week program is taught by trained volunteers who are family members caring for their loved ones themselves.
The virtual class series begins Wednesday, March 22, from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. Classes continue every Wednesday through May 10. Participants must register in advance to ensure that the class is an appropriate fit and to receive the Zoom link. Registrants are expected to attend all eight classes.
The Family-to-Family program provides education about various diagnoses, such as schizophrenia, major depression, bipolar disorder, panic disorder, obsessive-compulsive disorder, borderline personality disorder, and co-occurring mental illness and addiction. Participants will learn how to empathize and communicate with their loved one, as well as how to address their own needs as they care for a person with mental illness.
Participants find the Family-to-Family experience empowers them to understand and pursue paths toward healthy recovery for their loved ones, their families, and themselves. They share the invaluable opportunity of open conversation and mutual support in a stigma-free environment. Family-to-Family not only provides information and strategies for taking care of a loved one, but also shows participants they are not alone.
To register for a class, visit namivt.org/f2f.