Beware of this NAMI outfit they are sponsored by pharmaceutical companies like but not limited to Pfizer Inc, Eli Lilly & Co., AstraZeneca, Forest Laboratories, Inc., etc. Investigated by various Local & Federal authorities. NAMI still has more than enough money to buy protection & influenced in its teaching programs and advocacy of drugging victim/ patients that makes them appear mentally ill with it's backing pharmaceutical industry's dangerous drugs . Ask your local state NAMI affiliates what percentage of their income is received from drug provider companies, they will not be happy when you ask. NAMI only wants funds, they refuse people who really need them & only want money & volunteers.
NAMI is involved with hospitals who kidnap children and adults. NAMI is on the side of those who profit from medical kidnapping dishonest hospitals, dishonest doctors, pharmaceutical companies, others who find victims not limited to local police & social workers, patient advocates who profit from finding new victims from hospitals. How this crime is operating is insurance fraud if someone has no medical insurance they are fit and released in must cases before 48 hours, If someone has medical insurance the victim patient will be help as long as funds are going to hospital & system this could be two weeks or months or even years depending when funds get cut off.
The drugs are used by the doctors & hospitals to make patients appear mentally ill when they are not. This fraud insurance money pays the doctors, funds hospitals, groups like NAMI are part of it, police use medical kidnapping in various ways, one is to steal valuables from victims when they have been medically kidnapped and are locked up when victim gets out police claim they have no idea what happened to money or other valuables and get away with it scot-free. So in closing NAMI is part of a crooked crimnal dishonest system. I do not recommend NAMI or any group, company or person involved with them.
When our adult child was diagnosed with schizophrenia, my wife and I knew very little about mental illnesses in general or about schizophrenia in particular. And most of what we "knew" was wrong. Fortunately the treating psychiatrist was excellent and was willing to point us to an organization we had never heard of, the National Alliance on Mental Illness, Santa Clara County affiliate. NAMI SCC, through support groups, their world class 11 week Family-to-Family course, monthly general meetings, Helpdesk/Warmline and free lending library became our vehicle for learning about schizophrenia and how to support and advocate for our very ill child. Recent studies have shown that mentally ill persons have better prognoses when they have the active support of an informed family.
Mental illnesses like schizophrenia are very difficult for physicians to treat. This is not surprising when one notes that these are illnesses of that most fundamental part of our being-our brain. And when the brain is ill it is often too sick to understand that it is sick. Thus accepting and continuing treatment is a major problem. The family has an important role to advocate for, to support, and to assist their ill loved one. NAMI SCC played a pivotal role in teaching my family how to do these things.
Now, years later, my ill child still has schizophrenia, but lives a good productive life working as a mental health professional. To many people this is a surprise because there is a very wrong stereotype of a "schizophrenic" as someone who at best lives in a board and care home and perhaps works part time in a supported workshop. With my loved one, as with many others who have a severe mental illness, success has come through their own hard work with the strong support of their professional treatment team and their family. Not only has their family learned what to do from NAMI but the ill person has gained much knowledge and support from the NAMI programs which are specifically for people with a serious mental illness.
My wish is that all people in Santa Clara County with a serious mental illness like schizophrenia, bipolar, clinical depression, severe anxiety, or PTSD and their families knew about NAMI SCC and would avail themselves to the offered programs.