National Alliance on Mental Illness facts for kids

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National Alliance on Mental Illness
Together for Mental Health
Founded	1979; 46 years ago (1979)
Founders	Harriet Shetler Beverly Young
Type	Nonprofit 501(c)(3)
Focus	Mental Health, Crisis Intervention
Headquarters	Arlington, Virginia, U.S.
Area served	United States
Method	Support, education, awareness, advocacy, and research
Website	https://nami.org/

The National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) is a group in the United States. It is a nonprofit organization, which means it works to help people rather than make money. NAMI was started by family members who had loved ones with mental illness.

NAMI's main goal is to help people and families affected by mental illness. They want everyone to live healthy, happy lives. They do this by offering support, education, and raising awareness. NAMI also works to make sure people understand mental health better. They offer classes and training for people with mental illnesses, their families, and community members. These classes teach about mental health. NAMI also holds events like Mental Illness Awareness Week and NAMIWalks to raise money and share information.

NAMI's main office is in Arlington, Virginia. They have about 1,000 local groups across all 50 U.S. states, Washington, D.C., and Puerto Rico. NAMI gets its money from donations, company support, events, and grants. They also publish a magazine called The Advocate a couple of times a year. NAMI has a HelpLine that people can call five days a week for support.

How NAMI Started

NAMI was founded in 1979 in Madison, Wisconsin. It was started by two women, Harriet Shetler and Beverly Young. Both women had sons who were diagnosed with schizophrenia. They felt blamed for their sons' mental health challenges.

They were also unhappy because there weren't enough services to help people with mental illness. They didn't like how people with mental illness were treated. So, they looked for other families who felt the same way. Their first meeting led to the creation of NAMI. The group's original name was the National Alliance for the Mentally Ill. In 1997, they changed the name to just NAMI. This was to use more respectful language. In 2005, the full meaning of NAMI became the National Alliance on Mental Illness.

What NAMI Does

NAMI's main goal is to help people recover and strengthen family bonds. They want to support families affected by mental illness. NAMI offers many programs and services. These include educational classes, support groups, and helpful publications.

At first, NAMI mainly focused on helping family members. But now, they also try to include people who have mental illnesses themselves. NAMI also works hard to fight against negative ideas and unfair treatment of people with mental illness. This is called stigma. Another goal is to help everyone understand mental health better. They also work to make the mental healthcare system better.

How NAMI Works

NAMI is a nonprofit organization run by a board of directors. These directors are chosen by NAMI members. NAMI National is the main organization. State and local groups work somewhat on their own. This helps them better serve the people in their local communities. Since 2020, NAMI has been following a five-year plan to guide its work.

The current leader, called the chief executive officer, is Daniel H. Gillison, Jr. Before NAMI, he led another mental health group.

National and state NAMI groups help with leadership, public education, and speaking up for mental health. They also manage NAMI's educational programs. Local NAMI groups help people find mental health resources. They also organize NAMI programs and host local meetings and events for members.

Working with Others

NAMI often works with other groups and famous people. These partnerships help them spread their message and get more support.

Famous Supporters

NAMI has teamed up with many celebrities and influencers. These people help raise awareness about mental health.

AJ Lee
Alessandra Torresani
Andrea Barber
Brittany McGowan
Carly Chaikin
Chris Hubbard
Chris Wood
Clark Gregg
Corinne Foxx
David Kendrick
DeWanda Wise
Frank Shamrock
Jamie Gray Hyder
Jeannie Mai
Maria Bamford
Marin Hinkle
Master P
Maurice Benard
Mauro Ranallo
Mayim Bialik
Morgan Stewart
Nadya Okamoto
Naomi Judd
Rachel Bloom
Stefania Owen
Sterling K. Brown
Sutton Stracke
Taraji P. Henson
Tritonal
Utkarsh Ambudkar
Vincent Valentine
Wil Wheaton
Willa Amai

Leaders in Mental Health

Since 2020, NAMI's CEO Daniel Gillison, Jr. has brought together leaders from many national mental health groups. They work together to improve mental healthcare in the country. This group includes leaders from organizations like the American Psychiatric Association and Mental Health America.

Community Groups

NAMI also works with other community groups. For example, they partner with VoteRiders to share information about voter ID rules.

Other partners include:

Alpha Kappa Alpha
Counter Logic Gaming
Fox Sports
HOSA-Future Health Professionals
Instagram
Jack and Jill of America
The Jed Foundation
Lokai
Stanley Center for Psychiatric Research at Broad Institute
Tumblr
Women's Health

NAMI's Beliefs

NAMI generally supports a medical model for understanding mental illnesses. This means they see mental illnesses as health conditions, like other illnesses. They used to call them "serious brain disorders." Now, they suggest using different words. NAMI also talks about anosognosia. This is when someone doesn't realize they have a mental health condition.

Advocacy Work

NAMI works hard to make life better for people with mental health conditions. They push for better healthcare and crisis support. They also fight against unfair treatment and harmful practices.

NAMI Programs

NAMI offers many programs to help and educate people and families. Most of these programs are free. Local NAMI groups set up these programs. Different programs are for different groups of people.

NAMI Family-to-Family

The NAMI Family-to-Family Education Program is a free eight-week course. It is for family members and friends of people with mental illness. It teaches about mental illness from a medical point of view. The classes are taught by a NAMI-trained family member. This person also has a loved one with a mental health condition. The program is taught in 44 states and parts of Canada.

What it Teaches

The Family-to-Family program gives general information about mental illness. It explains how mental illnesses are treated today. It covers conditions like schizophrenia, depression, and bipolar disorder. It also talks about medications and their effects. The program explains mental illness as something that affects the brain.

NAMI says this program helps families learn coping skills and how to speak up for their loved ones. It also offers support and teaches how to handle a crisis. Families learn about mental health conditions and how they affect the brain. They also find out about resources in their community.

Why it Works

Studies have shown that the NAMI Family-to-Family program helps people. Participants felt more able to handle things and had less anxiety. These good changes lasted for at least six months. The program was also found to help family members caring for someone with schizophrenia. It made them feel more capable and less burdened. Because of these findings, the program was added to a list of proven programs.

NAMI Peer-to-Peer

The NAMI Peer-to-Peer program is an eight-week course. It is for adults who have been diagnosed with a mental illness. This program helps people on their journey to recovery. It uses talks, discussions, and activities. It also teaches ways to manage stress. The program shares information about mental illness and personal experiences. It also helps people learn how to talk with healthcare providers. This program is also available in Spanish.

Early studies suggest that Peer-to-Peer helps people feel more in control and confident. Peer support programs in general have been shown to help people adjust socially.

NAMI In Our Own Voice

The NAMI In Our Own Voice (IOOV) program started in 1996. It was for people living with schizophrenia. The idea was that people who were successfully living with mental illness were experts. Sharing their stories could help others. The program aims to show that recovery is possible. It also helps build confidence. Because it was so successful, IOOV also started to speak up for mental health in public.

In this program, two trained speakers share their personal experiences with mental illness. They speak to an audience. Unlike most NAMI programs, IOOV is a single presentation. It teaches groups of people who might not know much about mental illness. The program wants to raise awareness about NAMI and mental illness. It also works to fight stigma and empower those affected. IOOV often teaches groups like police officers, politicians, and students.

Studies show that In Our Own Voice can help reduce self-stigma in families. It has also been helpful for therapists in training and teenagers. A study in California found that people were less likely to want to avoid others with mental illness after attending an IOOV presentation.

NAMI Basics

The NAMI Basics Program is a six-session course. It is for parents or other main caregivers of children and teenagers with mental illness. NAMI Basics is like Family-to-Family because it educates families. But it focuses on the special challenges of caring for a child with mental illness. Mental illness in children often looks different than in adults. The program also explains how mental illness affects the developing brain. This program is shorter to make it easier for busy parents to attend.

NAMI Connection

The NAMI Connection Recovery Support Group Program is a weekly support group. It is for adults (18+) who have a mental illness. The groups meet weekly for 90 minutes. They are led by trained people who also have experience with mental illness.

NAMI On Campus

Students promoting a university affiliated NAMI On Campus organization

NAMI On Campus helps university students start NAMI groups at their schools. This program was created to help college students with their mental health. Many mental illnesses first appear when people are teenagers or young adults. About 75% of mental illnesses start by age 24. When students were asked what stopped them from getting help, stigma was the biggest reason.

Ending the Silence

This program is 50 minutes to one hour long. It is for students, school staff, and family members. Two people present: one shares facts, and one is a young adult who shares their personal story of living well with mental illness. This program has been shown to help middle and high school students learn more about mental health.

In 2017, Tipper Gore, who was once the Second Lady of the United States, gave a large donation to this program.

Funding NAMI's Work

Actress Carly Chaikin emceeing the 2016 NAMI Los Angeles Walk and introducing Secretary of State Alex Padilla

NAMI gets money from many different places. This includes companies, government groups, foundations, and individuals. NAMI promises to be fair and not support any specific treatment or service. You can find records of NAMI's grants and donations on their website.

Company Supporters

NAMI works with many companies that help support their mission.

Acadia Pharmaceuticals
Alkermes
Bank of America
Beacon Health Options
Boehringer Ingelheim
Boeing
Bristol Myers Squibb
Chiesi Global Rare Diseases
Corcept Therapeutics
Genentech
Janssen
Kaiser Permanente
KPMG Foundation
Lululemon
Lundbeck
Myriad Genetics
Neurocrine Biosciences
NeuroStar
Northrop Grumman
Novo Nordisk
Otsuka Pharmaceutical
Pfizer
Sunovion
Takeda Pharmaceutical Company
Teva Pharmaceuticals

NAMIWalks Events

NAMIWalks are events where people walk to raise money for NAMI. In 2017, these walks raised over $11 million with 68,000 people taking part.

COVID-19 Support Fund

When the COVID-19 pandemic started, NAMI created a special fund. This fund helped people with their mental health during the pandemic. It received donations from companies and other groups like Johnson & Johnson and Starbucks. NAMI also started a program called Frontline Wellness. This program helped healthcare workers.