2009 General Meeting Topics
We've had some great informative and inspiring speakers at past NAMI Sacramento General Meetings. Here is a summary of meeting topics:
November: Mary Susan Hansen, M.D., clinical professor of psychiatry at University of California, San Francisco and past President of San Francisco Center for Psychoanalysis spoke on Relapse Awareness and Recovery Strategies. The purpose of the presentation was to help consumers, caregivers and family members understand relapse in schizophrenia. The program offered useful tips to help prevent or minimize relapse and provided strategies to help individuals get through difficult periods and stay on course with their recovery. Dr. Hansen covered topics including: what is relapse?; identifying relapse triggers and early warning signs; developing a relapse reduction plan; the importance of family and treatment team involvement. This program was sponsored by Janssen Pharmaceuticals.
October: Robin Bevier, Esq., was the speaker for October's General Meeting. The topic will be Special Needs Trusts. In the scope of her practice, Ms. Bevier routinely advises clients and prepares estate tax sensitive documents including wills and trusts, life insurance trusts, charitable remainder trusts, buy-sell agreements, business succession planning, entity choice and creation and other documents related to the areas of estate planning and business planning. She also routinely handles probate matters.
September: Tom Wootton, author of The Bipolar Advantage and The Depression Advantage, introduced his next book Bipolar In Order and spole about living an extraordinary life with bipolar and depression. Engaging and insightful, as usual, he is leading a revolution in mental health by offering a new and challenging perspective on treating mental conditions.
Tom Wootton has become a widely recognized speaker nationwide as a passionate agent of change. In 2007 he designed The Advantage Program in collaboration with top experts in the field. The program details a series of educational workshops, assessments, life planning, and treatment, which helps people create a truly integrated approach to bipolar and depression.
August: There was a public recognition and awards ceremony for NAMI volunteers in all family and consumer programs.
July: No Meeting
June: Dr. Robin Zasio, licensed clinical psychologist and co-owner of the Anxiety Treatment Center, spoke about anxiety disorders. An estimated 17 million Americans suffer from anxiety disorders, with these numbers on the rise. Further education and understanding is needed to offer proper treatment, less suffering and more relief. Dr. Zasio outlined the various forms in which anxiety disorders manifest, their symptoms, and treatment options. Dr. Zasio writes the “The Doctor’s Corner” featured monthly in the NAMI Sacramento newsletter.
May: Dr. David Mee-Lee, a Davis psychiatrist and one of the nation’s leading experts on co-occurring substance abuse and mental health disorders, spoke. Dr. Mee-Lee is a senior fellow of the Co-Occurring Center for Excellence, a project of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Substance Abuse and Mental Health Administration and is the author of many professional publications on the treatment of substance-related disorders.
April: Nancy Kilgore, MS, spoke on understanding Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD). Ms. Kilgore is a national trainer and author on PTSD and has appeared in newspapers, radio and television.
March: Linda Ellis, Director of Nursing at Turning Point Community Programs, spoke on managing medication in a recovery model.
February: New NAMI Sacramento Board President Pat Pavone talked to members in a "State of the Organization" address, covering accomplishments for 2008 and the outlook for 2009. We asked for members' input and gave away several door prizes.
January: We had an encore showing of the excellent film Out of the Shadow. Filmed over five years, it chronicles the life of the filmmaker's mother who suffers from schizophrenia. With grace and compassion, the film illustrates the painful complexities of severe mental illness and the inadequate public health system set up to deal with it. Out of the Shadow illuminates a national plight through on family's struggle and helps to dispel the stigmas and misconceptions surrounding this harrowing illness.