F2F caregiver support classes begin Saturday

By Dr. Edward N. Squire Jr.
National Alliance on Mental Health-Moore County

SOUTHERN PINES — Nationally, millions of families struggle to cope with and care for family members with serious mental illnesses, illnesses that affect 4.1 percent, and one in 24 adults, and which drastically reduce quality-life years.

Among Moore County’s 65,759 adults, one in 100 families may be affected by 2,740 mentally ill family-members.

Screen Shot 2015-03-04 at 8.02.25 PMCaregivers need support, as an antidote to caregiver stress, and without such support, some will eventually put their own mental health in jeopardy. In 1991, the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) launched its Family-to-Family (F2F) Program.

Veteran caregivers serve as mentors who teach, support and facilitate learning as they dispense empathy wrapped in firsthand caregiver knowledge.

In doing so, they create a supportive classroom atmosphere, thereby turning it into a true, therapeutic milieu.

Scientific publications have demonstrated the F2F Program’s effectiveness, as graduates leave with new knowledge, experience less stress, and develop more confidence in their caregiver abilities.

At the Community Presbyterian Church, 125 Everette Road in Pinehurst, 12 F2F classes will be starting on Saturday, March 7, from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m.

Knowledge obtained through this F2F course can be likened to a map, a GPS, or a front-seat passenger who’s traveled the same circuitous route many times over.

With their newfound knowledge, graduates are apt to make fewer wrong turns and are destined to give better care with less stress. For some, having participated may even be a godsend!

Dr. Edward N. Squire Jr. is a member of the board of directors for the National Alliance on Mental Illness – Moore County, which also serves Richmond County. For more information, contact Barbara Mellinger at 910-246-6231 or visit www.nami-moorecounty.com.

 

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