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Summer 2015 www.namimendocino.org

NAMI is the nation’s largest grassroots mental health organization dedicated to building better lives for the millions of Americans affected by mental illness. NAMI advocates for access to services, treatment, supports and research and is steadfast in its commitment to raising awareness and building a community of hope for all of those in need.

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In This Issue Mendocino County News “Voices” Documentary–Aaron Bassler Chair’s Column – Donna Moschetti 9 Mental Health Board 2015 Reports: 1. Children’s Services 2. Adult Services 3. Finances 4. Crisis Care 5. Jail 6. Housing 7. Cultural Competence Plan 8. MHSA 9. MHB Summary Report Grand Jury 2015 on CPS/FCS National News The Future of Treatment for Mental Illness: Depression -- Meds or CBT? The Body Keeps the Score Mindfulness-Based Interventions Board of Directors 2015 Donna Moschetti - President Sonya Nesch - Vice President/ Newsletter/Membership Jan McGourty - Secretary/Education Gladys Telschow - Treasurer Dorothy Dunlap-Community Outreach Mel Lockey - Family Support Groups Raven Price - Peer-to-Peer Recovery

Mendocino County News

“Voices” is an award-winning documentary that features the stark and intimate portraits of three very different individuals and their struggle with severe mental illness. The stories of Sharon, Thomas and Aaron illuminate the challenges, realities, and often complex emotions and choices that surround people with psychotic mental illness and those who love them. Our own Jim Bassler and other family members of Aaron Bassler speak about his normal childhood and then his tragic descent into severe mental illness, and the professional mental health treatment that was not available to him in our County.

Chair’s Column – Donna Moschetti I want to update everyone on the Human Race held in May. We raised $1,168.00 which will help us to provide our: Family-to-Family classes, Peer-to-Peer classes, Support Groups and Newsletters. All of our classes and support group are free. A big thank you to those who helped get donations and to those who donated. On race day we had 5 people who walked, a few people who stopped by our table to ask for more information about NAMI and to buy NAMI Mendocino tee shirts available in sky blue or gray for a $15 donation. If you are interested in getting a shirt, please contact either Sonya (937-3339) or myself (391-6867). It was a very nice morning. I encourage those of you who can to take part next year. We will be holding a Family-to-Family class in Ukiah this fall. The class is for family members, caregivers and close friends of those who have mental health issues, diagnosed or not. We have not yet set a date. If you wish to take the class or know someone who could use this class, please call or email me at livefromoz@yahoo.com. We need Family-to-Family and Peer-to-Peer Teachers and Support Group Facilitators. Please let me know if you are

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interested. I will forward you the requirements and commitments, and you can decide if it is right for you. We plan to sponsor “Families and Addiction Forums” with Patrick and Mardi Brown in September in Fort Bragg, Willits and Ukiah. The Browns co-authored with Robert H. Brown, Families and Addiction: How to Stop the Chaos and Restore Family Balance. A “Family and Addictions Support Group” will begin in Fort Bragg in September. Call Sonya (937-3339) if you are interested in attending or starting a group in your community. As always please feel free to contact me with any questions, comments, concerns or if you just want to chat.

Excerpts of 9 Mental Health Board 2015 Reports http://www.co.mendocino.ca.us/hhsa/pdf/2015_MHB_Annual_Board_Report.pdf

This particular Mental Health Board (MHB), under the able leadership of Chair John Wetzler took their mission seriously and did an admirable job of investigating County Mental Health Services and Finances in their MHB Committees. All their detailed reports can be found on the Mendocino County Mental Health Board website and they are worth reading. The problems can be corrected if the Supervisors have the will, AND provide the leadership to insist that the up to $25 million State and Federal Mental Health dollars be spent in our communities for State Mandated Treatment. When you look at the Children’s Services Report and all they do, you can’t help but wonder why Ortner can’t provide many of the same services for Adults. Together they get around $16 million. Other counties provide more Adult MH Services (see EQRO) for their share of the State and Federal MH Patient money. We learn in the Financial Committee Report that how County Mental Health spends the government money is secret and not available to the MHB or the public. Why was the $3.9 million Mental Health overcharge to Medi-Cal that must be repaid, kept secret from the MHB and public until the March mid-year budget was made public?

1. Youth Services Committee – Chair Denise Gorney, Maureen O’Sullivan

Redwood Community Services (RCS) provides Assertive Community Treatment (ACT) for children and young adults up to their 25th birthday. They provide services as a Multi-Disciplinary Team with a: Therapist, Rehabilitation Specialist, and Program Coordinator who work closely with a Nurse and Psychiatrist. Participants have 24/7 Access to a Team Member. RCS provides 24/7 Emergency Crisis Support. They also offer Substance Abuse Support, Vocational Training, and Education. These services could also be available to Laura’s Law clients. RCS offers an excellent model to Supervisors and Upper Management for the services that are needed by adults.

2. Adult Services Committee -- Chair Sharon Wolbach, Jill McCaughna

Some Ortner Management Group contracts were reviewed. The Subcontractors must have qualified staff and provide timely services. Ortner’s ICMS/Access/Crisis Centers in Fort Bragg and Ukiah are the entry point for Mental Health Services. Their Crisis Line is staffed 24/7. They arrange for 5150s with Ortner’s Jessica Riley RN, at their Yuba City facilities. They receive 800 to 900 calls/month. The Hospitality House (HH) proposal to blend the homeless population and mentally ill is rife with potential problems and needs to be watched. HH says they do not co-mingle Mental Health and Homeless Services funds. The Committee recommends: 1. Establishment of a Detox Center may alleviate public anger and allow more effective services to the mentally ill who often use drugs/alcohol to excess. 2. More funding for Peer Counseling in the Point Arena area. 3. Monitoring HH conversion of the Coast Hotel. 4. Focusing on the needs of under-served populations -- Tribal and Hispanic Communities.

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3. Finance Committee – Chair Nancy Sutherland, Dina Ortiz, Jan McGourty “Time and time again we were told (by County Mental Health Department) the data is not available. We were unable to obtain the most basic reports . . . Quarterly Financial Report or the Cost Report.” We were unable to obtain annual budget information from Ortner Management Group and Redwood Quality Management Company (known as ASOs) to learn how much money goes into direct services and how much into management costs. Is Ortner providing more services and of better quality? Are there any benefits to privatization or not? What is causing the increase in out-of-county hospitalizations and is it sustainable? Is using the Jail or the ER as uncertified Mental Health Holding Facilities, the most viable financial option to support public health and public safety? The County Mid-Year Budget made public in March, reported that the MH Department had a $4.6 million shortfall. The MHB was never told about this and wants “open communication . . . regarding the repayment, focusing on the impact on consumer services.” The MH Department overcharged MediCal $3,962,658 over 3 years from 2007 to 2010. County MH says the remaining $702,398 is due to: ACA increases in access to services; Housing setbacks for MH clients; and Delayed electronic records technology. The MHB wants the 2014 EQRO data that the State provides on Mendocino County’s Medi-Cal MH services and costs compared with other small counties and the State average. The Nevada County MH Budget is more informative, easier to understand and would be a good model for our County MH Budget. MHB wants the Mid-Year Budget published on the County Budget webpage. MH Department should “work cooperatively with the MHB on financial issues, educate rather than prevaricate, and make substantial efforts to improve current systems to support transparency and accountability at all levels of MH finance.

4. Crisis Care Committee -- Chair Nancy Sutherland, Kate Gaston, Jan McGourty, Tammy Lowe, William Russell, Supervisor John McCowen

There is an increase in hospitalizations and our suicide rate is twice the State average. ER has been experiencing significant increases in Mental Health crises in the past year. Since Privatization, some patients have trouble accessing their medical provider; many complain about the quantity and quality of Mental Health Services. Need to have higher academic and experience standards for Crisis Workers and Case Managers. The unanticipated delay of Laura’s Law eliminated for the time being an important link in the continuum of Pre-Crisis and Post-Crisis Care Services. Other needs are: 1. Local Crisis Residential Treatment Center allowing up to 30-day stays. 2. Substance Abuse Treatment Program with a strong Co-Occurring Disorder Component, Crisis Support and Residential Treatment options. 3. Expanded and strengthened Pre-Crisis and Post-Crisis Services for the most effective way to reduce Mental Health Care costs, reduce hospitalizations and incarcerations, and support consumers and families dealing with the daily challenges of mental illness. 4. Outreach services, and Self-Help Support Groups and Education Groups for Consumers and Family Members 5. Consistently applied Crisis Services, 5150 Rescission Procedures, and Follow Up at all service locations. Law Enforcement officers can deem a person 5150 before being sent to ER only to have it rescinded by Ortner or RCS, with little or inconsistent follow up or safety measures.

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5. Jail Services Committee – Chair Kate Gaston, Jan McGourty, Maureen O’Sullivan

Jail staff reported feeling isolated from community service providers. There is a disconnect between Mental Health Services and Alcohol & Other Drugs Services that leads to larger problems in the jail. Since the for-profit Medical Corporation, California Forensic Medical Group (CFMG) took over Jail Psychiatric Treatment, County Mental Health and Ortner are not involved in jail MH services. They are apparently not providing oversight and coordination with community resources. At the Jail, Psychiatrists treat inmates via telemedicine. There is no therapy and a lack of Psychiatric Clinicians. No one from the jail is ever 5150’d to received needed psychiatric crisis medical treatment. Anyone who is sent to the hospital on their way to jail on a 5150, has that rescinded, and they end up in jail, without treatment. There is a perception that Ortner rescinds all 5150s for inmates. The Jail is unable to get them into a hospital bed, so inmates continue to languish, lose opportunity to recover, live through their time somehow at the Jail; treatment is medication for the most part. Staff reports seeing rapid decompensation among inmates with mental illness, that are housed in Isolation Cells. It was suggested that if “doctors at the hospital were aware of what Jail safe rooms/cells looked like, they would not send mentally ill individuals (in crisis) back to jail.” Suggestion was that hospital staff and doctors tour the Jail. The Jail Classroom Program is usually not available to inmates with mental illness because of the perceived need for an officer to be in the classroom with them. Jail personnel would like “Crisis Intervention Training” Dr. Jay Holden has a contract with the County to restore inmates with misdemeanors to “competent to stand trial”. So far, five individuals were returned to competency at an estimated savings to taxpayers of $80,000. Dr. Holden stressed the need to expand this program to felons, which is currently disallowed by state regulations. Previously, inmates could wait many months for a bed in a psychiatric hospital to be available. In April 2015, 21% of inmates had mental illness. Of 327 inmates, 69 inmates needed mental health treatment. Medication costs up to $37,000 per quarter and after one month in the jail, Medi-Cal is suspended and the County pays.

6. Housing Committee – Chair Denise Gorney, Roger Schwartz, Tammy Lowe “Mendocino County . . . has the second highest rate of homelessness per resident in the country . . .” Our “county population is 87,841 with 36,065 being renters. Fair market rents are $811 for a studio, $869 for a one bedroom, $1,147 for a two bedroom.” The maximum SSI is $889/month. In a studio apartment, that would leave just $78/month for food, utilities, etc. There are 1,067 federally assisted affordable rental housing units in Mendocino County and a huge wait list for these units. Ukiah has 15 properties with 649 units, Fort Bragg has 5 properties with 228 units, Willits has 5 properties with 164 units and Point Arena has 1 property with 26 units. The Community Development Commission has a total of 141 units -- 43 units of family housing in Fort Bragg, 36 units in Ukiah and 60 units in Willits. There are currently 130 clients receiving rental assistance. Many Indian Reservations have housing units and some provide emergency vouchers for housing assistance. This report lists the housing we do have. Mendocino County is about to spend $1.3 million, $400,000 of this for providing and managing services and maintenance to create the first permanent supported housing for mentally ill people in the County. The MHB hopes this money is spent wisely and that units will be built in Ukiah and Fort Bragg.

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7. Cultural Competence Plan Committee – Chair Dina Ortiz, Maureen O’Sullivan 1. The MHB needs to be a strong advocate for MH Services for people of color and non-English speaking people. Many minorities in this County have been and continue to be traumatized based on discrimination, acculturation, poverty and humiliation. The family unit needs support and education about mental illness 2. The culture of poverty needs to be included in the Cultural Competence Plan. We have people who are stressed about their financial condition and are taken advantage of by financial institutions. Add to this a family member who suffers from a mental illness, and this can create a long lasting negative effect on a family, and can even dissolve a family. 3. The culture of mental health consumers needs to be addressed and recognized. Consumers are the most minimalized group in our community. They suffer from discrimination, poverty, most suffer from loneliness, isolation, lack of knowledge about mental illness, poor health, and lack of social support. 4. Law Enforcement needs to be a partner in the Cultural Competence Plan. Trainings should include them, along with regular communication between the MH Providers and Law Enforcement. 5. MH Providers need to: speak the language of the people they are providing services for, be bicultural, and have ongoing trainings about the culture of the people they are working for.

8. MHSA Committee – Chair Dina Ortiz, John Wetzler, Roger Schwartz See Comparisons of County MHSA Programs at http://www.namicalifornia.org

People in our communities want: Mobile Crisis Teams throughout the County Crisis Stabilization Units to decrease hospitalizations Bilingual and bicultural services for our 30% Latino population Support Programs for Adults and Seniors that will prevent hospitalizations Dual Diagnosis Programs; Housing and Employment Services Quarterly Financial Statements from County Mental Health and Contractors Laura’s Law (Assisted Outpatient Treatment) implemented NOW The MHB needs to educate the County CEO, Director of HHSA, MH Director, and Ortner who say that Laura’s Law cannot be implemented due to lack of funding and that it is forced treatment. Laura’s Law saves money (see Nevada County and national experience with Assisted Outpatient Treatment) and is NOT forced treatment. Additionally, MHB received word from the CEOs Office that implementation of Laura’s Law will be delayed until further notice. State audit shows Mendocino County was overpaid during time period of 2007-2010. At March MHB meeting, we were informed that Mental Health Program would not be affected. Health and Human Services, along with contribution of funds from HHSA administrative reserves, would slowly pay this debt off. Therefore questions arise about the delay of implementation of Laura’s Law. Laura's Law allows courts--after extensive due process, to order a small subset of people with serious mental illness who meet very narrowly defined criteria to accept treatment as a condition of living in the community. It also allows courts to order the recalcitrant MH system to provide treatment. By failing to use Laura's Law, County Mental Health Directors transfer the seriously ill to jails, prisons, shelters and morgues. Nevada County implemented Laura's Law and found:

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• Hospitalization was reduced 46%; • Incarceration reduced 65%; • Homelessness reduced 61%; • Emergency Contacts reduced 44%; • Savings of $1.81-$2.52 for every dollar spent as result of reduced incarceration, arrest, and

hospitalization.

9.  Mental  Health  Board's  (MHB) Summary Report – Chair John Wetzler

“To be committed to consumers, their families and the delivery of quality care with the goals of recovery, human dignity, and the opportunity for individuals to meet their full potential.”  The smarter the Board is, the better we can serve the Supervisors and the County Mental Health Department. It is always our intention to be of positive service to the County regarding mental health concerns. As we are the sounding board for the public to the County MH Program, our job is to inform the members of the public and ensure credible information is dispensed, and misinformation is corrected.  

A major MHB accomplishment that can save people’s lives is that from now on, Sheriff’s Deputies will always notify County Mental Health when a Deputy on a 5150 call finds that a person in crisis is suicidal.

The MHB wants the MH Department to provide timely MH financial data including from the Ortner and RCS. They want to have regular communication with the CEO, Director of HHSA, Financial Department, and Contract Office employees, in order to better understand how the system works. With this knowledge the MHB can give informed advice to the Supervisors. We want to provide Supervisors with information and support to implement Laura’s Law. Thirty percent of Mendocino County’s population is Latino, and they are being ignored by the Adult MH Program. Ortner provides MH Services to less than 1% of the Latino population. MHSA provides no funding for any of the local agencies that provide 100% of the bilingual/bicultural services. We hear the following -- Our system of care is too complex, too top heavy, populated by meeting goers, and the concerns of finance trump clinical care. What is being done every day to personally support the most fragile among us? Are Mental Health Services considered a priority, a burden, or a compelling necessity? Is the system in place, but underutilized? Where are the highly trained professionals, Psychiatrists, Psychologists, LCSWs, Case Managers and Peer Counselors? Why is medication support so much more important than follow-up therapy and the education that people need to control their symptoms? Does Medi-Cal pay for therapy?  Our Board intends to continue to be a strong partner with our Mental Health System. We need transparency, collaboration, and a free flow of information from all levels of our MH Program to become that partner.

Grand Jury 2015 on Child Protective Services http://www.co.mendocino.ca.us/grandjury/pdf/14-15-HHSA_Family.pdf

Another important read is the 2015 Grand Jury Report on Child Protective Services, now called Family & Children’s Services (FCS). The Mendocino County FCS ranks at the bottom of California counties for two of three State measures of job performance. FCS is required by law to provide timely and appropriate services to children at risk. FCS fails to conduct timely investigations and is not in compliance with State-required educational standards for Social Workers handling child abuse/neglect cases. Under-qualified staff, staff shortages and poor management decisions are problems that need correcting. More than one-third of the allocated

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Social Worker positions are unfilled. A significant number of FCS professional and supervisory staff do not meet State educational standards for their positions. Senior management is aware of these problems and their consequences, but has failed to address them. The County’s use of inexperienced and under-qualified staff to conduct Emergency Response investigations places an additional burden on supervisors and increases the probability of children or staff coming to harm.

The average annual number of referrals for child abuse has increased by over 12% in the last six years. Currently, Case Worker active cases are between 30 and 40 mixed “Emergency Response Referrals” and “Continuation Cases”. Best Practices recommends caseloads for FCS Social Workers between 17 and 20 mixed cases.

There was an exodus of experienced staff in the period 2011-2014. The base salaries were cut in 2011 by 10%. There have been no staff increases since 2008 to meet the increased workload experienced. The controversial 2013 reorganization significantly decreased morale. Management moved to a “top down management (command-and-control) style”. A hallmark of this style is a lack of communication with subordinates about personnel and staffing decisions, decrease in collegiality, and a lack of transparency of management actions up and down the chain. This is not a good management model for Social Agencies. Management took retaliatory action against workers who disagreed with them. Staff is reluctant to speak out on issues for fear of retaliation.

National News The Future of Treatment for Mental Illness

“NAMI Advocate” Spring 2015 -- Depression – Meds or CBT? -- PET scans and MRIs are being used to examine parts of the brain thought to be affected by depression. Dr. Helen Mayberg, Emory University in Atlanta found that people with low activity in the anterior insula responded quite well to Cognitive Behavior Therapy; but poorly to the antidepressant. Conversely those with high activity in this region had an excellent response to the antidepressant; but did poorly with CBT (JAMA Psychiatry). CBT teaches people to become aware of and correct negative thinking. The symptoms of depression may look the same; but the cause and location in the brain may differ. Different treatments work on different parts of the brain. The Body Keeps the Score: Brain, Mind, and Body in the Healing of Trauma by Bessel van der Kolk, MD. The psychiatrist writes that we have three brains – Our rational, cognitive brain occupies about 30% of the area inside our skull and is primarily concerned with the world outside us. Below that lie two evolutionarily older and to some degree, separate brains which are in charge of everything else – the moment by moment management of our body’s physiology, and the identification of: comfort, safety, threat, hunger, fatigue, desire, longing, excitement, pleasure, and pain. The part that is online when we are born is often called the reptilian brain. Right above that is the limbic system or mammalian brain. Together these two make up the “emotional brain” which reacts quickly compared to our cognitive brain. Trauma happens to us, our friends, families and neighbors. The Center for Disease Control and Prevention has shown that 1 in 5 Americans was sexually molested as a child; 1 in 4 was beaten by a parent to the point of a mark being left on their body; and 1 in 3 couples engage in physical violence. A quarter of us grew up with alcoholic relatives, and 1 out of 8 witnessed their mother being beaten or hit. Approximately 1/3 to 1/2 of severely traumatized people develop Substance Use Disorder. Neuroscience shows us how trauma changes the structure and function of the brain, self-regulation, and our capacity to stay focused and in tune with others. We now understand why traumatized people become disengaged, why they are bothered by sounds and lights, and why they may blow up or withdraw in response to the slightest provocation.

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The Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACE) study (a collaboration between the CC and Kaiser Permanente) shows child abuse and neglect is the single most preventable cause of Mental Illness and Drug and Alcohol Abuse. James Heckman won a Nobel Prize from demonstrating the vast savings produced by early intervention in the lives of children from poor and troubled families: more high school graduations, less criminality, increased employment, and decreased family and community violence. Thomas Insel, Director of NIMH says that the malfunction of entire brain circuits may underlie many mental disorders. NIMH is now focusing research on the Human Connectome, instead of DSM categories. The Connectome is a network of neurons (nerve cells) in the brain. Mapping the Connectome deciphers electrical signals that zap through it to generate our thoughts, feelings and behaviors. Looking beyond specific symptoms of mental illness, almost all mental suffering involves trouble in relationships or in regulating arousal (anger, shut down, overexcited, or disorganized) or both. Being able to feel safe with other people may be the single most important aspect of mental health. We need to be truly heard and seen by the people around us, and feel that we are held in someone else’s mind and heart. We need a visceral feeling of safety to calm down, heal and grow. There are an array of interventions that can bring the brain areas related to self-regulation, self-perception, and attention back online. The brains natural neuroplasticity allows us to rewire our own emotional brain so that we don’t react immediately, but instead give our self some space around an issue to choose to say no when that is in our best interest. Neurofeedback changes brain connectivity patterns and the mind follows by creating new patterns of engagement. The brain can be rewired to contradict helplessness, rage, fear, hopelessness, abandonment, worthlessness and invisible feelings associated with trauma, enabling both adults and children to reclaim ownership of their bodies and their lives. The following techniques help people with: depression, addictions, anxiety and panic attacks, self-regulation in mood disorders, PTSD, obesity, self injuries, ADHD, and much more.

Some Neurofeedback Techniques that Offer Paths to Recovery EEGs, electrodes, and computer-generated feedback for the patient, using a system of rewards to promote feelings of safety, relaxation and openness has proven successful for many conditions. Military and Veteran’s Administration facilities are using neurofeedback to treat PTSD. The challenge in PTSD is to open the mind to new possibilities, so that the present is no longer interpreted as a continuous reliving of the past. EFT and EMDR -- Reliving trauma reactivates the brain’s alarm system, so it is important to integrate traumatic memories. In EFT (Emotional Freedom Technique) you use your fingers to tap a sequence of acupressure points on various parts of your body while you relive the traumatic experience. In EMDR (Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing), patients heal from trauma without having to talk about the intolerable, or explain why they feel upset. They stay fully focused on noticing their internal experience. Yoga – Learning to listen to and inhabit your body, and to look inward (instead of outward). MBSR – Mindfulness Based Stress Reduction – Research has shown conclusively that mindfulness practices can be substantially helpful for people with stress, pain, and illness — that would be all of us. And research has also shown that mindfulness practices can be very helpful for people with serious psychiatric illness, including depression, anxiety, psychosis, eating disorders, and addictions. And most recently, research has shown that mindfulness practices can promote healthful change in brain structure and functioning. Mindfulness practices cultivate innate human capacities, by training and strengthening the mind.

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Mindfulness is the awareness that arises when we pay attention to the present moment, on purpose, with an attitude of curiosity and non-judgment. When we are mindful, we are paying attention to what is happening right now; it is the opposite of being on autopilot. Everyone has had the experience of being caught up in worries about the future or bad feelings about the past. At those times we are less aware of what is happening around and inside us. Our most vivid happy memories -- those moments when we felt most alive -- are generally moments of mindfulness. When we are mindful, we feel present to our lives. When we are being mindful, we feel connected to ourselves and to others around us. Research on positive emotion tells us that feeling alert and attentive is a positive feeling in and of itself, and training in mindfulness is in part training our capacity to be attentive. Mindfulness entered the mainstream of American medicine through the pioneering work of Jon Kabat-Zinn and his colleagues at the University of Massachusetts Medical Center where he founded a stress reduction clinic that blossomed into the UMass Center for Mindfulness in Medicine, Healthcare, and Society, now an internationally recognized center for training and research on mindfulness. Dr. Kabat-Zinn developed the eight-week MBSR Program which has been studied extensively. MBSR classes are now offered at several hundred healthcare institutions internationally. In Northern California, MBSR classes are offered at UCSF, Kaiser-Permanente, and Sutter facilities. The mindfulness practices taught in MBSR classes are derived from ancient contemplative traditions, particularly Buddhist meditation. Participants learn to meditate, and the majority continue to meditate after their 8-week program ends. But the real goal of MBSR is to reduce suffering by helping people learn to live more mindfully. Mindfulness based interventions have shown promising results for: Anxiety including OCD, and other challenges Depression “The Mindful Way Through Depression” is an 8-week Oxford U. Program Psychotic Symptoms of hearing voices and other symptoms of schizophrenia Mindfulness Based Cognitive Therapy Mindful Eating Mindfulness Based Relapse Prevention for people in recovery from addictions who become more aware of cues that can trigger relapse, and develop stronger ability to resist craving when it arises. Mindfulness practice can help us all observe our own mind at work, and can teach all of us that we cannot always believe the things we think. More information is available at: Full Catastrophe Living: Using the Wisdom of Your Body and Mind to Face Stress, Pain, and Illness by Jon Kabat-Zinn. The Mindful Way Through Depression: Freeing Yourself From Chronic Unhappiness by Mark Williams, Jon Kabat-Zinn, et al. Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction Activities Workbook – http://pdfzone.co/mindfulness-workbook-tulane-university/ “I’m no different than you. The only difference between me and you is that my mind is quieter than yours.” Dalai Lama

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NAMI Mendocino County National Alliance on Mental Illness P.O. Box 1945 Ukiah, CA 95482 www.namimendocino.org NAMI Family Support Groups: Fort Bragg – 1st Thursday 5:30 pm to 7 pm 201 E. Fir St. 707-937-3339 Laytonville – 4th Wednesday 6 pm, 44400 Willis Ave. 707-984-6282 Ukiah – Every other Tuesday 6 pm, 270 Pine St. 707-485-0239 Mental Health Board 3rd Wednesday of each month 10 am to 1 pm www.co.mendocino.ca.us/hhsa/mh_board.htm Families and Addiction Support Group Begins in September -- Call Tanya 964-1458

NAMI Membership/Renewal Application Name ______________________________________________________________ Address ______________________________________________________________ Phone email ______________________________________________________________ 3-Way NAMI Membership (Local, State & National) $35 Local NAMI Newsletter only $10 Open Door/Low Income Membership ($3 or sliding scale) $__________ Benefactor/Patron Membership and Donation $__________ Mail to NAMI Mendocino County P.O. Box 1945, Ukiah, CA 95482