Don’t miss the inaugural IMPACT SUMMIT! Hear inspiring stories and actionable strategies for 2024 and beyond. Join NAMI Massachusetts, partners, sponsors, and change-makers as we celebrate the Impact made in 2023 and drive future progress. Secure your spot – limited tickets available!
5 February
Day: 1st Mondays of the month
Time: 6:00 – 7:30 PM
Location: Zoom
Contact: Ingeborg at namisiblings@yahoo.com
Day 1: Saturday, February 17, 2024
Time: 8:30 AM – 6:00 PM
Day 2: Sunday, February 18, 2024
Time: 12:00 – 5:00 PM
Trainers: Steve Hadden and Dori Prescott
Location: NAMI Massachusetts, 331 Montvale Ave, Suite 200, Woburn, MA 01801
Contact: Ilya Cherkasov at (617) 286-7607 or icherkasov@namimass.org
NAMI Family-to-Family is a free, 8 or 9-session educational program for family, significant others and friends of people living with mental health conditions.
A NAMI Family-to-Family teacher is a trained NAMI leader who plays an important role in ensuring that all participants feel welcomed and supported. They are volunteers who become certified by completing a self-paced 2-hour pre-training online module and then attending and graduating from one-and-a half-day in-person training. Teacher trainees must go through an application and screening process before being approved to attend a training event.
Thanks to the DMH grant, NAMI Mass can now acknowledge each F2F leader’s contribution with an optional $400 stipend for each course they teach.
All meals and program supplies are provided free of charge to all trainees.
Hotel accommodation is provided for trainees from far-flung affiliates.
21 February
22February
26 February
Date: Monday, February 26, 2024
Time: 7:00 – 9:30 PM
Location: Zoom
Contact: Katerina Georges at katgeorges@icloud.com; Yolanta Kovalko at kovalkoyolanta9@gmail.com
23March
Otoño
Contacto: NAMI Western Mass en information@namiwm.org o 413-786-9139
5 February
Day: Tuesdays
Time: 7:00 – 8:30 PM
Location: Zoom / Montachusett Veterans Outreach Center, Inc., 268 Central Street, STE A, Gardner, MA 01440
Contact: Cortney at 508-331-2921
At this time, we do not have any available Basics courses. You can add your name to the general registration waitlist and, once we have available Basics courses on our schedule, we will be in contact with you regarding the next steps in the registration process. Please register early, as your registration date serves as your priority date for admission to the next class.
If you have any questions, please reach out to programs@namimass.org.
Support increased access to behavioral health care through insurance! Act now and let the Co-Chairs of the Joint Committee on Financial Services know that commercial insurance should be required to provide community-based care for those experiencing psychosis.
Contact: monica@mhpolicy.org
NAMI is proud to introduce the Teen & Young Adult (T&YA) HelpLine: A free nationwide peer-support service providing information, resource referrals, and support to teens and young adults. Our T&YA Specialists are young people who understand what you’re going through because they have been through stuff, too. They are experienced and well-trained. They care and want to help you find a way forward. Reach out by phone, text, or chat.
- Text “Friend” to 62640 to immediately connect with a HelpLine Specialist trained to provide resources, information, and support.
- Chat at nami.org/talktous to connect with a HelpLine Specialist on NAMI.org.
- If you are a teen or young adult with questions about mental health, call 1-800-950-NAMI (6264) to speak with a NAMI HelpLine specialist now.
Available Monday through Friday, 10:00 AM – 10:00 PM ET
At NAMI Massachusetts, we’ve always believed in the power of collaboration and community impact. Our Small Business Ally Initiative, launched in Summer 2023, is a way for local businesses to support the mission and programming of NAMI Mass while tapping into our vast network of people and resources.
Plus, get your goodies and make an impact by shopping at one of our Founding Members of the Small Business Ally Initiative. A portion of every sale goes to NAMI Mass at these existing Small Business Allies:
This free program focuses on building sibling resiliency, decreasing trauma and strengthening families of youth with Autism Spectrum Disorder, Developmental Disabilities and/or Mental Health Issues.
Date: First Thursdays; from February 1, 2024
Sibling group: 5:30 – 6:30 PM
Parent/caregiver group: 5:30 – 7:00 PM
Follow-up parent discussion group: 5:30 – 6:30 PM
Location: Zoom
Contact: Emily Rubin at (857) 523-1145 or emily.rubin@umassmed.edu
What is the program about?
For Siblings it is an opportunity to meet peers that understand what it’s like to have a brother/sister with behavioral issues, express their feelings and process their experiences in a safe setting, and learn coping strategies.
Parents & caregivers join an information session on how to decrease trauma and increase resiliency among siblings. We discuss the experience of siblings, strategies for parents to best support siblings, information on why it is important to support siblings, and resources for the family. Once caregivers have attended the first session, they are invited to join a follow-up discussion group offered on subsequent Thursdays.
Who is eligible to participate?
- Parents & caregivers, regardless of the age of the children. This includes all adults in a caregiving role, such as grandparents, aunts and uncles.
- Siblings between the ages of 6–18 that are able to engage appropriately and independently in a group setting.
- The child with challenging behaviors is not eligible to participate; this program is designed to support the family members of that child.
- Parents/caregivers can participate if siblings do not, and vice versa.
Date: Sunday, February 18, 2024
Time: 7:00 – 8:30 PM
Location: Spontaneous Celebrations, 45 Danforth St, Boston, MA 02130
Join us for an incredible night of music and support a great cause! The Rhythm Future Quartet will be performing live at Spontaneous Celebrations in Jamaica Plain, MA, USA. Get ready to tap your feet and let the rhythm take over!
Don’t miss this opportunity to enjoy the captivating sounds of this talented quartet while helping to raise funds for the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI). It’s a win-win!
Mark your calendars for this in-person event, and grab your friends, family, and anyone who appreciates good music. Let’s come together to make a difference and have a fantastic time!
This concert is part of a yearlong series of jazz fundraising concerts produced by New England Jazz Connections thanks to funding from the Boston Mayor’s Office of Arts and Culture. New England Jazz Connections (NEJC) is a performing arts organization that presents concerts in conjunction with non-profits, charities, or advocacy groups to raise money and awareness for worthy causes. Its mission is to foster community through shared experience, raise the profile of jazz and jazz artists in New England, and help existing organizations carry out their vital work.
This is a rigorous training for people preparing for a Certified Peer Specialist (CPS) role in the community or service system. CPS is not an entry-level position and the training is designed for people who have some knowledge and have their own experience with mental health peer support. A CPS has been trained to share their experiences of healing with trauma, a mental health diagnosis, services, and support and to carry the message that “Healing is a Self-Determined Process.”
In sharing our wisdom, strength, and hope with others (including people using services, mental health professionals and policy makers) CPSs can significantly impact peoples’ beliefs about their own capacity to heal and the capacity of others to heal with the experiences they’ve lived through. The CPS program includes classes that covers 24+ modules, small group activities and homework. The course supports students to inspire hope in people they support and work with. After completing the class, students are eligible to take a written examination in order to become certified. Application process is open until January 19, 2024.
CPS Eligibility Requirements
- 18 years of age or older
- Live or work in Massachusetts
- High School Diploma or equivalent (GED, HiSET, etc)
- Have your own lived experience with significant life impacts like trauma, receiving a mental health diagnosis.
- Willingness to share your own mental health recovery story in the context of peer support
Class 5 (Spring): March 4, 2024 – April 4, 2024
Time: 9:00 AM – 4:00 PM
Location: Hybrid
Contact: cps@kivacenters.org
Today, the Executive Office of Health and Human Services and the Middlesex County Restoration Center Commission, announced the Commission has selected Vinfen as its clinical partner as it works towards establishing the first law enforcement focused crisis diversion facility in the Commonwealth. With an aim of diverting individuals away from criminal justice involvement and into treatment, the state’s first Restoration Center will have a “no wrong door” policy, providing walk-in and police drop-off opportunities to serve those in need of behavioral health care in the community.
The Center will serve as an alternative to arrest or emergency room transport for individuals in need of behavioral health care including substance use disorder (SUD) treatment by providing a full behavioral health continuum of services under one provider. Vinfen is a leading nonprofit provider of community-based services for adults and youth with behavioral health conditions and adults with developmental disabilities.
“This announcement is an exciting moment and the culmination of years of planning and implementation. As we prepare to launch services through the Restoration Center, we know that this model has been both tested and proven in states across the country. Our goal is not only to create a pathway away from incarceration here in the Commonwealth, but to build a lasting program that can inspire other alternatives across the nation,” said Commission Co-Chairs Dr. Danna Mauch, president and CEO of the Massachusetts Association for Mental Health and Middlesex Sheriff Peter J. Koutoujian. “We look forward to working with a trusted and local partner, Vinfen, which has the leadership and expertise to support individuals in crisis by knocking down traditional barriers to access and helping connect them with effective support and care.”
Services will include triage and assessment, crisis stabilization beds for up to 24 hours, sober support beds, crisis respite beds for up to two weeks, and case management and aftercare planning. Once implemented, the pilot will serve as a model for other crisis centers in the state and fold into an already strong network of community behavioral health centers offering immediate, confidential care and wrap-around support to divert people from unnecessary hospitalization.
What is EPICC?
EPICC is a program focused on helping parents with serious mental illnesses connect with their children through meaningful activities. This is a 10-week program aimed at supporting parents to learn about the benefits of engaging in meaningful activities as a family. Parents will also receive support in planning and making meaningful activities a part of everyday life. These activities may improve communication and may help improve relationships between parents and kids!
We are looking for individuals who:
- Are ages 18 and older
- Are an adult parent with a diagnosis of a psychotic disorder or mood disorder.
- Indicate a desire to engage in more meaningful activities with their child, regardless of child’s age
If you are eligible to participate, you will be asked to complete 3 research interviews, which will take approximately 90 minutes each. In appreciation of your time, you will receive a $20 gift card for each interview completed.
You will also be enrolled in an online program to support you with ideas and problem-solving to help you connect with your child. The program has 1-1 phone call or video meetings with a recreational therapist every other week, and a video support group every other week. You will also receive informational videos. You may be enrolled right away, or you may have to wait 10 weeks to participate in the program.
Contact: parenting@temple.edu
Communicating effectively helps us build and shape support for mental health policies and programs that work. Framing issues in ways that tap our audience’s innate optimism, empathy, and shared values helps us advocate successfully for change. But effective framing is not always intuitive, and it’s easy to inadvertently undermine advocacy goals with communications that lose sight of the big picture.
In partnership with the FrameWorks Institute, MAMH is offering a free training, tools, and resources to help you communicate more effectively to boost knowledge, shift attitudes, and build support for mental health and wellness in your community.
Communicating for Change: How to Talk About Mental Health to Build Support for What Works is a 4-hour training available free of charge to organizations and individuals working toward improved mental health policies and programs, especially at the intersection of the mental health system and the criminal legal system or mandated treatment. Advocates, policymakers, and communications staff are especially encouraged to participate.
Each training includes an overview of effective framing, strategies to improve communications, and hands-on opportunities to apply the strategies to your own work. Trainings can be provided in person or virtually.
Have you or a loved one used crisis stabilization services through community behavioral health centers (CBHCs)? Have you had a positive or negative experience? If so, Eli Cahan, a mental health reporter with ABC News and The Boston Globe, would love to discuss with you. If you are interested in speaking with him, you can reach out at emcahan@gmail.com or (650) 285-0702.
For the last several years there have been just a handful of Mental Health Specialty Courts in Massachusetts. That number is increasing to sixteen and will likely continue to grow. Learn how the process unfolds for potential participants.
The Transitions to Adulthood Center for Research in the Psychiatry Department at UMass Chan Medical School is recruiting new members for their Young Adult and Family Advisory Boards. They want to grow their advisory boards to include more members that identify as coming from marginalized and underserved communities. Join a board to ensure that your voice is heard in the work they do.