Mental illness not only affects the person who is ill, but their families and loved ones as well. The National Alliance on Mental Health (NAMI) of Massachusetts is sponsoring is sponsoring a free family-to-family educational course on the Island for family members of individuals with a serious mental illness. The course has been given nationwide to over 200,000 family members since its inception. It is taught by two trained family member volunteers and is intended to help family caregivers cope with a close relative’s mental illness.

We are pleased to again help increase awareness of this valuable program, which was given on the Island for the first time in the winter of 2009. This will be the seventh year that it is offered on the Island. This year the 12 weekly classes, offered free of charge, will be held in Oak Bluffs on Tuesday evenings from 6:30 to 9 p.m., beginning Tuesday, Jan. 19.

Class participants have had these comments: “The class was excellent, tremendously informative, supportive, empowering, encouraging. I entered the 12-week class feeling anxious, depressed and pessimistic about my ill family member’s future possibilities, and at the end of the 12 weeks I fell strong, hopeful, and no longer isolated.” Other participants noted: “This program offers the education that is much needed on this Island. I have benefitted in many ways, the most of which is to understand more about this illness of my family member. This understanding has afforded me to experience more patience with them and speak and react more appropriately. The course has been extremely beneficial to my husband and myself. It has helped us to be more understanding and emphatic towards our ill family member. It has also given us hope and it opened closed doors.”

Funded by NAMI Cape Cod and The Islands, the course consists of 12 weekly two and one half-hour sessions. The classes will cover information about schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, major depression, obsessive-compulsive disorder, anxiety disorders and borderline personality disorder. The biology of mental illness, treatments and medications currently in use to help those who suffer from it are discussed. Also covered are topics such as coping skills, crisis and relapse management, listening and communication techniques, problem solving and limit setting techniques, empathy and the family caregiver’s need for self-care.

Peter Weiden, M.D. author of Breakthroughs in Antipsychotic Medications says: “Family members who take the NAMI family-to-family course are better equipped to work with mental health clinicians in a collaborative manner. My bottom-line recommendation? Take this course. It will help you learn to cope successfully with a major challenge in your life, and that, in turn, will help your loved one as he or she works toward recovery.”

The course is open to close relatives and significant others of persons with a serious mental illness. However, it is not open to individuals who themselves suffer from a serious mental illness, unless their condition is stable and they wish to attend as caregivers for close relatives who have a mental illness. The class size is normally limited to 30 people and advance registration is required. Please call either Daryl at 508-627-5249 or Peggy at 508-693-5872 with any questions and to register.

We are so fortunate to have this program on the Island. Please take advantage of the support it offers.

Juliette Fay
Vineyard Haven

The writer is executive director of Martha’s Vineyard Community Services.