Support Groups

NAMI Sacramento Support Groups

NAMI Sacramento's Family Support Groups are led by peers who have been trained to meet with friends and families of people with mental illness, and who have had similar experiences with their own family member. In the words of one NAMI support group leader:

"Typically there are 3 to 6 participants at each of our Family Support Groups, a group small enough to allow people to talk about their specific issues related to the mental illness of their loved ones.  We discuss our challenges as family members, supporting each other by sharing information and advice.  Often the group will do some brainstorming to help someone who is struggling with a particularly difficult issue.  We try to reinforce the NAMI Principles of Support, a very positive and healing framework for our group discussions."

NAMI Sacramento's Connection Consumer Support Groups are guided by trained peer facilitators and provide a confidential, weekly recovery support group for people living with mental illness regardless of their diagnosis. People learn from each others’ experiences, share coping strategies, group wisdom and offer each other encouragement and understanding. 

Connection meets weekly for 90 minutes and is offered free of charge.  Connection follows a flexible structure without an educational format and does not recommend or endorse any medications or other medical therapies.

Support Groups in General

Support groups provide a place where people with issues in common can meet and share information. This is a place to be with people who have been or are in the same situation with their illness or a family member's illness as you. Support groups are usually good places to learn about coping strategies and resources that others have found that have helped them.

Some of the support groups below are established national organizations that are described further in Global Resources, marked as [national]. Others are Sacramento groups only, marked as [local]. Please confirm the date and time of support group meetings before attending.

Bereavement Network Resources of Sacramento, Inc. Sharing Group [local]
	Format 1:	Grieving persons only.
	When:	2nd, 4th and 5th Thursdays of each month, 7:30 - 9:00 p.m.
	Format 2:	Educational meetings open to the public
	When:	1st and 3rd Thursdays of each month, 7:30 - 9:00 p.m.
	Where:	Sutter Center for Psychiatry (see map) 7700 Folsom Blvd., Sacramento
	Contact:	(916) 557-5882 http://www.griefhelpsacramento.com
Children and Adults with Attention Deficit/Hperactivity Disorder (CHADD) Meeting [local]
	For:	Adults with ADHD or parents who have a child with ADHD.
	When:	1st or 2nd Tuesday of the month from 7:00 - 9:00 p.m. (See CHADD to confirm dates.)
	Format:	First hour: guest speaker. Second hour: break out support groups on various topics.
	Where:	Sutter Center for Psychiatry (see map) 7700 Folsom Blvd., Sacramento
	Contact:	(888) 759-9758 or CHADD.
Depression and Bipolar Support Alliance (DBSA) Support Group [national]
	For:	People dealing with their own or a family member's depression, bipolar and other mood disorders.
	When:	2nd and 4th Wednesday of each month, 7:30 - 9:00 p.m.
	Where:	Sutter Center for Psychiatry (see map) 7700 Folsom Blvd., Sacramento
	Contact:	Andrea Hillerman: (916) 875-4710 Marilyn Hillerman: (916) 875-4710 Tina and Terry Imai: (916) 686-7063
Emotions Anonymous [national]
	For:	People working toward recovery from emotional difficulties.
	Contact:	(916) 366-0699 or http://allone.com/12/ea/
	When:	Saturday, 1:30 p.m.
	Where:	Wellness Center 3815 Marconi Ave., Sacramento
	When:	Thursday, 7:00 p.m.
	Where:	Lutheran Church of the Good Shepherd 1615 Morse Ave., Sacramento Meet in the choir room
	When:	Tuesday, 6:30 p.m.
	Where:	Parkside Community Church 5700 S. Land Park Drive, Sacramento
	When:	Tuesday, 6:30 p.m.
	Where:	Sierra Arden Church of Christ 890 Morse Ave (at Northrup)
Friends for Survival, Inc. Support Group [national]
	For:	Anyone who has survived the loss of a loved one by suicide.
	When:	3 meetings per month
	Where:
	Contact:	Marilyn Koenig (916) 392-0664 (800) 646-7322
NAMI Sacramento – Connection Recovery Support Group [national]
	For:	People dealing with their own mental illness, regardless of the diagnosis. For more information on this program, see NAMI Connection.
	When:	every Sunday evening, 7:00-8:00 p.m.
	Where:	Sutter Center for Psychiatry (see map) 7700 Folsom Blvd., Sacramento
	Contact:	Coordinator: Joe Teixeira at (916) 425-9855
NAMI Sacramento – Family Support Group [national]
	For:	People dealing with a family member's mental illness.
	When:	2nd Thursday of each month, 6:30 - 8:00 p.m.
	Where:	Heritage Oaks 4300 Auburn Blvd Sacramento CA 95841 (see map)
	Contact:	Facilitator:  Pat Pavone (916) 397-7831
		OR
	When:	4th Wednesday of each month, 6:45-8:15 p.m.
	Where:	Sierra Vista Hospital 8001 Bruceville Road Elk Grove CA (see map)
	Contact:	Facilitator:  Caroline Caton (916) 204-4512
OCD Kids Sacramento – Family Support Group [local]
	For:	Kids 18 and under with OCD and their families.
	When:	First Sunday of every other month (Jan, Mar, May, July, Sept, Nov) 2:00 PM to 4:00 p.m.
	Where:	Kaiser Permanente Point West Clinic 1650 Response Road, Conference Room #1 Sacramento, CA 95815 (see map)
	Contact:	http://www.ocdkids.com
Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (OCD) Support Group [local]
	For:	People coping with their own or a family member's obsessive-compulsive illness.
	When:	every Monday, 7:00 - 9:00 p.m.
	Where:	Sutter Center for Psychiatry (see map) 7700 Folsom Blvd., Sacramento
	Contact:	Jim: (916) 223-6541 Steve: (916) 456-8239
Recovery International Support Group [national]
	For:	People diagnosed with mood disorders, psychotic disorders, anxiety and obsessive-compulsive disorders, and personality disorders, as well as people who have not been diagnosed, but who are having difficulty dealing with the problems of everyday life.
	When:	Sunday, Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, Friday
	Where:	Click here for location information
	Contact:	(916) 483-5616
Sacramento Borderline Personality Disorder Non-BP Support Group [local]
	For:	People who have a family member or friend who suffers from Borderline Personality Disorder.
	When:	to be announced
	Where:	to be announced
	Contact:	Lee Gassaway: (916) 421-7354 www.meetup.com
Sacramento Self Injury Group[local]
	For:	Support group for adult self-injurers meeting in Elk Grove.
	When:	See web site for more information.
	Where:	See web site for more information.
	Contact:	http://www.meetup.com/The-Sacramento-Self-Injury-Group/
Sacramento Bipolar Support Group - Balanced
	For:	The support group is designed for people with bipolar disorder who want practical tools to improve their life. We also welcome family and friends who want to learn about bipolar disorder.
	When:	Every Wednesday - 7pm to 8:30pm
	Where:	Trinity Lutheran Church - 1500 27th Street
	Contact:	Joe Long - 916-834-0004
Meetup.com Groups [local]
		You may find other informal groups that keep their own schedules at www.meetup.com. Search for a diagnosis to find a group of people that share your interests.
If you are aware of other support group meetings that could be posted here, please let us know.   NAMI Sacramento does not necessarily endorse the organizations and groups listed above. This information is offered as a convenience for namisacramento.org site visitors.