National Alliance on Mental Illness Support groups bring together people who are experiencing — or have experienced — similar challenges or experiences. Examples include: bereavement, caregiving, cancer diagnoses, or mental health issues in loved ones. Like a bridge between participants’ shared challenges and resulting emotional health, support groups offer emotional support, understanding, coping techniques, and the comfort of shared personal experiences.   Support Group Formats Formats for support groups vary and may include: face-to-face meetings, teleconferences or online mental healt ..read more

There are many questions we ask ourselves about suicide.  The biggest question for families and loved ones left behind by someone who commits suicide is always, “WHY?” Why would they do that? How could I have prevented it?  The only real way to prevent it is to learn more and stand ready to walk our loved ones away from the point of no return. Here are our top 5 suicide questions, answered. What is suicidal ideation? Suicidal ideation, also known as suicidal thoughts, is thinking about, considering, or planning suicide. The range of suicidal ideation varies from fleeting thoughts t ..read more

The social isolation effects on mental health are being seen all over the world!  In most parts of the country, we’re living under conditions that we have never experienced before. For the first time in our lives, we’ve been sheltering in place for almost four months now, with an uncertain duration of social isolation stretching before us, probably followed by sporadic lockdowns over the next year or two. It’s unprecedented, uncertain, and unnerving at best. And the long-term effect on our mental health is still unfolding. What we do know is that this is not helping our mental health. Acc ..read more

Perhaps you’re considering online mental health therapy, but are wondering if it is as powerful as in-person therapy. During our current time of social distancing because of COVID-19, even many clinicians who normally only conduct in-person therapy have switched to online formats. Meeting online can offer better appointment availability, since we can select times that may not correspond with clinicians’ regular in-person office hours, such as early morning or evening appointment times. We may actually find some comfort from conducting therapy sessions online/at home, since we’re surrounded by ..read more

I am an American Soldier. On the battlefield, there are two fronts that we encounter: There is the actual battlefield and then there is life after our DD214 and discharge. Where do we go when we’ve stood in our last formation, when there’s no battle buddy to lean on? This is where we go. This is what we do. I took an oath that will never expire until I do and so did you!  If you are thinking about quitting, keep reading. It Can Go Sideways It was April 8th, 2020 and I saw a phone call coming over from a business contact who was a fellow Army veteran. At the age of 33, “John” (name protect ..read more

NAMI CCNS is uniquely positioned to serve the mental health needs of the Chicago North Shore community and suburbs. As a branch of the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI), NAMI CCNS has access to a vast network of resources and support that allows them to provide exceptional care to those in need. Additionally, NAMI CCNS has a deep understanding of the unique challenges facing the Chicago North Shore community and suburbs, which allows them to tailor their programs and services to meet the specific needs of the people they serve. Personal Experience with NAMI Many individuals and famil ..read more

The Cook County North Suburban Affiliate of the National Alliance on Mental Illness (“NAMI CCNS”) has announced a new Executive Director and a new Program Director to lead the organization in its mission to assist individuals and families coping with mental illness. Jeffrey Rabin was appointed as Executive Director of NAMI CCNS on December 5, 2022. Since 1988, Mr. Rabin has been the principal attorney of Jeffrey A. Rabin & Associates, Ltd., a Park Ridge IL law firm that focuses on the representation of individuals who are disabled and seeking benefits fro ..read more

Health officials preparing to broaden the reach of a national mental-health crisis line are working to strengthen an overstretched network of call centers that didn’t connect with about one in six callers in recent years, a Wall Street Journal data review showed. The National Suicide Prevention Lifeline will transition on Saturday to a three-digit number for calls and texts, 988, from a 10-digit number that has operated since 2005 in coordination with local crisis centers. The line’s operators, including the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration and the nonprofit Vibrant Em ..read more

SPENCER, Okla. — Even on the day Alania Vasquez reported her 14-year-old son to police, the enormity of the decision hadn’t fully hit her. She told an officer who came to her apartment that she believed her son would hurt people, likely at a school. He had a growing obsession with guns and violence, and she had discovered him watching videos of school shootings. He’d been in trouble for making threats at school and bringing in a pocketknife. A teacher had overheard him telling his classmates how to construct pipe bombs. He’d had an angry outburst earlier that day, which was in September 2019 ..read more

Nothing ever truly prepares a person for combat or the hardships of military life. Soldiers quickly learn that they need each other more than anything! They fight for each other and die for each other. Bonds solidify and men stand side-by-side and shoulder-to-shoulder. Soldiers survive because of these bonds in battle, but back in the civilian world these bonds are often lost and the wandering begins. This is a story of John Silva and of veterans finding those strong bonds again and overcoming them together! John Silva was no different and it’s veteran support groups like the one John attends ..read more