Al-Anon, Nami, and Circle of Comfort and Assistance

I find that going to an Al-Anon meeting is very helpful in my dealing with certain aspects of having a loved one who is suffering from a severe brain disorder. Not everything applies of course but you can 'Take What You Need and Leave the Rest'! Most of their slogans and principles are very helpful in managing my day-to-day life. To find a meeting near you to start (I recommend attending several different meetings as they all are different) you can go to: Also, NAMI's Family-to-Family education classes are a good basic understanding of mental illness. They don't get into the serious issues of severe brain disorders such as schizophrenia with severe symptoms, but you will come away with a better general understanding that is helpful. To contact you local NAMI chapter go to: http://www.nami.org/Template.cfm?Section=Family-toFamily&Template=/TaggedPage/TaggedPageDisplay.cfm&TPLID=4&ContentID=32973 To share personal stories and be with others who have loved ones suffering from severe brain disorders and are in different phases of intervention, treatment, and 'recovery' you can go to the facebook page below and click on join. Please state the reason you wish to join and your e-mail as the page is 'secret' to protect the identity of all. https://www.facebook.com/groups/567799843274518 Remember, you are not alone! There are other families who are going through what you are or have already been there and done that! There is always hope and support! P.S. If you're wondering why Al-Anon would be applicable, a high number of those who suffer from an untreated or improper treatment of a brain disorder use street drugs and/or alcohol.