Along These Lines...

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1 Volume 1, Issue 3 Summer 2017 PHOENIX Inside this issue: NAMI 2017 Public Policy Agenda NAMI Abilene General Meetings NAMI Night Big Country Tuesday, July 11, 2017 Tuesday, Aug. 1,2017. Tuesday, Sept. 5, Our Community In Our Own Voice: Theresa S. 3 About NAMI Abilene 3 NAMI On Campus: Abilene Christian University 4 Signature Programs 5 Special Thanks 5 Contact Us 5 All meetings are at 6 p.m. 910 Cypress Street. Abilene, TX Along These Lines... CONGRATULATIONS! We made it! On in our efforts to become an officially recognized Affiliate of NAMI. We re working feverishly preparing and uploading all the required documents for NAMI Texas/NAMI while simultaneously focusing on programming and fundraising. We continue to strengthen our relationship with Mental Health America of Abilene and other members of the recovery community through the Big Country ROSC (Recovery Oriented Systems of Care) group. With regard to programming we re trying to arrange for our members to be trained/retrained to facilitate two (2) NAMI Signature Programs - NAMI Family Support Group and NAMI Connection Recovery Support Group. We have contacted NAMI Dallas about participating in their 2017 NAMIWalks, under the banner, Team PHOENIX, and have begun raising funds in our service area of Taylor and Jones counties by soliciting sponsors and individual contributions. Additional funds are required for transportation and Team tee-shirts. Proceeds of July is National Minority Mental Health Month. July 11th meeting NAMI Night Big Country Texas A Call for Help Program Overview During Minority Mental Health Month NAMI Abilene joins the mental health community in reaffirming our commitment to building our understanding of mental illness, increasing access to treatment and ensuring that those who are strug- NAMIWalks go to our programs of support, education and advocacy and all We need your help as we strive to improve the lives of those affected by mental illness find help and find hope. Should you wish to donate, make checks payable to NAMI Texas with a notation on the memo line NAMI Abilene. Or you can donate online at Until next issue...

2 Page 2 NAMI 2017 Advocate! Advocate! Advocate! Is still our rallying cry. for a new legislative calendar and a new administration in the nation s capital. There will be much rancor in the United States capitol over expenditures and NAMI will be there! So, from the NAMI Blog, January 27, 2017, by Happy Carlock, New Congress, What Now?, we re reminded, America is in a time of transition. And any major transition whether in politics or in our personal lives is often accompanied by a range of emotions. Just log onto your Facebook or Twitter page and you re likely to be flooded by alarming headlines and heated commentary. NAMI pledges to be in the conversation every step of the way, fighting to make sure that your mental healthcare is protected and keeping you informed of new developments. NAMI opposes the repeal of the Affordable Care Act (ACA or Obamacare). The patient protections and increased access to insurance that were included in the bill have supported millions living with mental NAMI Abilene participates with Grace Community Gardens 2017 NAMI Abilene Community Outreach NAMI Abilene has chosen as one of it s community outreach projects participation in this years Grace Community Garden which is located directly across the street from the facility that hosts our monthly NAMI Nights Big Country (monthly general meeting). The Gardens of Grace Community Garden contains numerous raised beds, one of which seats NAMI s garden of vegetables, herbs and plants. In addition to the raised beds, it contains square foot gardening style, available for neighbors of the garden. In addition, at this time, there is a section for 50 rows of vegetables. The garden itself was begun in March NAMI Abilene turned it s first shovel of soil in the hot sun on Saturday, March18th. Why Byl decided to start in the heat of the day has yet to be unearthed. But if you know Byl, you know the answer. Participants include volunteers from the NAMI Abilene membership and supporters. GARDENERS OF GRACE

3 Volume 1, Issue 3 Summer 2017 Page 3 In Our Own Voice (Theresa s story) I am Theresa and I live in recovery. My dark days were filled with selfmutilation, self loathing, and low self-esteem which manifested itself in alcoholism, bulimia, anorexia, and prescription pill addiction. Although I have no conscious memory of it, my birthmother told me I was raped by my stepfather at the age of seven. Later in early childhood I did experience molestation by a guy I was running pills for as a means of punishment and dominance. My need for pills and alcohol increased as well as my overwhelming sense of loneliness. The very man who repeatedly molested me, the very man for whom I was a runner, was the very man I fantasized about marrying. Suicidal ideations ran rampant but God always put someone in my path to give me the will to go on. I finally accepted the fact that I was an addict. That I had hurts, habits and hang-ups and my life had become unmanageable. The evidence, my badly scarred arms that I d kept hidden. There had to be more to life. What led to my acceptance was my siblings who offered much needed support and love. Although I didn t go to a Treatment program I did move into a sober living facility where I learned to live independently again, here in Abilene. My sobriety date is May 6, I have learned that happiness is out there. Happiness is even About NAMI Abilene NAMI Abilene is a newly formed Affiliate in Texas. NAMI Abilene offers a variety of education classes and support groups, participates in area mental health events, and advocates for people with mental illness and their family members and friends. We welcome people living with a mental illness, their family members and friends, and mental health professionals to get involved with NAMI Abilene activities. Our service area (Abilene) covers Taylor and Jones counties. All meetings, classes, and support groups are free and are centrally located. The success of our organization depends upon involvement of community members like yourself! Come JOIN US! YOU can make a DIFFER- ENCE! There are many ways to get involved: Take a mental health class Participate in a support group Lead a class or support group Attend our general meetings Advocate for improved mental health services Become a member

4 NAMI On Campus College life swiftly passes imbued with memories fond. The recollections, slowly fade away. But there s one college campus, and a graduate student in particular, that wants to make a difference. And help eliminate stigma. On Wednesday, March 22, 2017, I had the distinct honor of meeting with Mallory Brickman, a young graduate student and employee of Abilene Christian University. Our hour-long meeting was most productive. Initial introductions had been arranged through the efforts of one of the members of our Leadership Committee, Shawn Wright. After assessing her knowledge of NAMI, I shared NAMI Abilene s vision for the current calendar year. We discussed the NAMI On Campus program and how beneficial it could be to the ACU family of student organizations. NAMI On Campus clubs provide students with peer-run mental health organizations on campus. They work to end stigma that makes it hard for students to talk about mental health and get the help they need. Clubs hold creative meetings, hold innovative awareness events, and offer signature NAMI programs through partnerships with NAMI Texas and NAMI Abilene. Abilene Christian University is no stranger to advocacy and to these ends can lend their voices to ours. NAMI Texas s role as an advocacy organization grew from the need of it s members individuals with mental illness and their families to affect a positive change in the response of society, government and business to an individual with a mental illness. We look forward to great things as we forge our relationship with Mallory and ACU! Introducing WRAP Training (Wellness Recovery Action Plan) Workshop Saturday, June 3, House Campus Amy Lyn Ave. Abilene. NAMI Abilene hosted a one-day workshop introducing WRAP. WRAP is a self-designed prevention and wellness process that anyone can use to get well, stay well and make their life the way they want it to be. It was developed in 1997 by a group of people who were searching for ways to overcome their own mental health issues and move on to fulfilling their life dreams and goals. It is now used extensively by people in all kinds of circumstances, and by health care and mental health systems all over the world to address all kinds of physical, mental health and life issues. WRAP has been studied in rigorous research projects and is listed in the National Registry of Evidence -based Programs and Practices. We graduated five (5) participants. WRAP helps you: Discover your own simple, safe Wellness Tools. Develop a list of things to do every day to stay as well as possible. Identify upsetting events, early warning signs and signs that things have gotten much worse and, using Wellness Tools, develop action plans for responding at these time. Guide you through the process of developing a Crisis Plan or advance Directive. Introduce you to Post Crisis Planning.

5 P.O. Box 2352 Abilene, Texas (325) Crisis Line: NAMIAbilene/ Millions of Americans are affected by mental health conditions every year. NAMI, the National Alliance on Mental Illness, is the nation s largest grassroots mental health organization dedicated to building better lives for the millions of Americans affected by mental illness through education and support for both the individual and the family. NAMI Connection Support Group NAMI Signature Programs Type Day and Time Location Contact NAMI Family Support Group Third Tuesday 6:00 p.m. -7:30 First and Third Tuesdays of the month 7:00 p.m Cypress, 901 Cypress Abilene, TX Byl (Bill) Byl (229) Suicide Hotline NAMI In Our Own Voice Coming Fall,2017 TBA. Make appointments at Byl We re on the web nami-abilene General Meetings NAMI Nights Big Country Open to the Public First Tuesday of the month 6 p.m. 901 Cypress Abilene, Texas Byl (Bill) Boyd The only person you are destined to become is the person you decide to be. - Ralph Waldo Emerson A Note of Thanks: Special thanks to Jenny Goode of Betty Hardwick Center, Richard Kennedy and Ronnie Simon of the 180 and House, Paul Mathis of Highland Church of Christ/, Holly Doggett, Stacy Hollingsworth, and Patty Haynes from NAMI Texas, Renata Ponichtera, Field Capacity & Governance, NAMI, and most of all, to YOU! Every year, NAMI Texas hosts a mental health conference.. It will again be in Austin, Texas and NAMI Abilene plans to be there. November 2-4, 2017