Erasing the stigma of mental illness

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Erasing the stigma of mental illness

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As enlightened as our culture fancies itself, we still tend to stigmatize mental illness.

We might think of police log entries with “crazy” people yelling profanities. We might think of “nutcases” locked in the “loony bin.” That demeaning, oddly childish language underscores how we treat mental illness as an outlier, an aberration, something confined to the fringes of polite society.

That attitude makes it hard to talk about mental illness affecting a friend, a loved one, or even ourselves.

In fact, an estimated 20% of the population lives with a mental illness. We can’t face that fact, identify the root causes of mental illness, and reach consensus on solutions until we eliminate the stigma.

That’s one of the goals of the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI). A group of St. Helenans are trying to start a Napa County affiliate, and they need your help.

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By “you,” we don’t just mean St. Helena readers. We mean residents of Napa (where many mental health resources are headquartered), Calistoga, and every corner of the county. No matter your skill set — medicine, psychology, communication, fundraising, strategic planning, you name it — the fledgling NAMI affiliate could use your help.

Local organizers Eric Hall and Kathryn and Terence Ford — who’ve all experienced mental illness in close family members — explained to us that NAMI operates at the grassroots, neighborhood level to connect those affected by mental illness with professional resources and peer support.

If someone close to you has experienced mental illness, you know the problem doesn’t just affect that person. It affects you and everyone else that person is close to. Recognizing that, NAMI offers support groups for those of us who are affected by someone else’s mental illness.

NAMI also teaches the public how to identify signs of mental illness and how to access local resources.

NAMI’s goals are clear, but we’re still not entirely clear on how it works aside from the small group sessions. We encourage passionate advocates like Hall and the Fords to sharpen a succinct elevator speech for potential organizers and participants.

There’s still time to flesh that out. For now, organizers are trying to build a board of about a dozen people who have either professional or personal experience dealing with mental illness. They’d like to attract broad representation from the wine industry, the LGBTQ community, Latinos, veterans and first responders.

The Napa County NAMI will need to build an online presence and establish a 501(c)(3) nonprofit. Although NAMI is volunteer-driven, they’ll also need an executive director to direct volunteers and organize and carry out activities.

They also want to team up with nonprofits like the Boys & Girls Club, UpValley Family Centers, Rianda House and Blue Zones.

We encourage them to add Napa-based agencies like Mentis, Aldea, Napa County Adult Mental Health Services and Cope Family Center to that list. Building partnerships in Napa would broaden NAMI’s reach. This is too important to be a strictly St. Helena effort.

If you want to help, email Hall at erichallemail@gmail.com.

There’s a growing recognition that the U.S. is experiencing a mental health crisis, from depressed teenagers to isolated and lonely seniors.

Grassroots efforts like NAMI could be the first step toward destigmatizing mental illness, building a stronger support system, and saving lives.

The Star editorial board consists of Napa Valley Register editor Dan Evans and community volunteers Norma Ferriz, Shannon Murray Kuleto, Bonnie Long, Peter McCrea, Chuck Meibeyer, Gail Showley and Dave Yewell.

Originally Appeared Here