2011 NAMI Conference: Scholarships Available for Parents

Did you know that scholarships are available for the 2011 NAMI Conference?  If you are a parent of a youth aged 18 or younger receiving mental health services in Allegheny County, you may qualify.

This year's conference has many offerings that might be of interest to parents of youth in the mental health system. Our previous blog post highlighted our keynote speaker Alex White, who will be discussing his experience of growing up with intolerance.  In addition, we are offering workshops on topics of interest to parents, including:

Ask the Doctor:
Mental health consumers and family members often have many questions that can't be quickly answered in a short doctor's visit. Do you have questions about: Medications and their side effects? The symptoms of different mental illnesses? How to make better lifestyle choices? During this workshop, Dr. Chaudhary will answer participants' wide variety of questions concerning mental illness while discussing effective treatments and supports that promote recovery and healthier living.

What Are The Options? An Up-to-Date Look at Best Practice Therapies and Treatments:
People living with mental illness can be helped greatly in their ongoing recovery with pharmacological and therapeutic interventions. Implementing early intervention with effective treatments in mental health programs requires informed and educated consumers and family members advocating for availability of evidence-based therapies. This workshop will provide a brief overview of best practice therapies for treating mental illnesses.

A Consumer and Family Guide to Co-Occurring Disorders: Psychiatric Illness and Substance Use Disorders:
Substance use disorders (SUDs) are common among consumers with psychiatric disorders and can complicate their recovery if both types of disorders are not addressed in an integrated manner. This presentation will review the prevalence of co-occurring disorders, types and causes of SUDs, effects on the consumer and family, treatment options (medications and counseling), relapse risk factors, recovery, and how mutual support programs can help. Helpful strategies for consumers and families to cope with co-occurring disorders will be reviewed.

For more information about our conference, visit our website.  For more information about available scholarships, contact Susan Harrington at 412-366-3788.

Contributed by Lora M. Dziemiela, Program Secretary