NAMI Family-to-Family Education Course

MEQUON - The National Alliance on Mental Illness of Ozaukee County will sponsor the NAMI Family-to-Family Education Program specifically for families of persons diagnosed with serious mental illness. The 12-week series of classes will start in Mequon on Sunday from 3 p.m. to 5:30 p.m.

The course will cover information about schizophrenia, the mood disorders (bipolar disorder and major depression), panic disorder and obsessive compulsive disorder; coping skills such as handling crisis and relapse; basic information about medications; listening and communication techniques; problem-solving skills; recovery and rehabilitation; and self-care around worry and stress. The curriculum has been written by an experienced family member mental health professional and the course will be taught by NAMI-Ozaukee family member volunteers who have taken intensive training as course instructors.

"This course is a wonderful experience," said NAMI Ozaukee President Mary Luzinski. "It balances basic psycho-education and skill-training with emotional support, self-care and empowerment. We hope families with relatives who have a serious mental illness will take advantage of this unique opportunity."

The course is designed specifically for parents, siblings, spouses, teenaged (age 18 and 19) and adult children and significant others of persons with severe and persistent mental illness. This course is not appropriate for individuals who themselves suffer from one of the major mental illnesses.

The NAMI Family-to-Family Education course is free. Class size is limited.

For more information or to register, view the website http://namiozaukee.org, email namiozaukee@gmail.com or call NAMI Ozaukee at 262-243-3627.