NAMI Family & Friends is a free 90-minute or four-hour seminar that informs individuals who have loved ones experiencing mental health conditions on how best to support them and their journeys. Additionally, NAMI promotes this as an opportunity for individuals to gain community support and perspectives.
NAMI Family & Friends has a free companion e-book in English, Arabic, Chinese, Farsi, Korean, Spanish, and Vietnamese that has information around diagnoses, treatment and recovery, crisis planning, and resources.
Sign up for a seminar: Here
Created by the national council for mental wellbeing, mental health first aid for adult is a one-day training provided in English and Spanish to teach people how to recognize signs of mental health or substance use challenges in adults ages 18 and older. The course provides information on how to offer and provide initial help, reducing stigma, how to guide a person to appropriate care specifically around anxiety, depression, psychosis, and substance use conditions.
The format of the training varies depending on what organization is conducting the training, such as hybrid, virtual only, and in-person only. They have a variety of organizations that are qualified to perform this training within the Alexandria area.
The American Foundation for Suicide Prevention has a two part series to their lived experience program, which is a course designed to educate communities on how to support individuals who have lived experiences with mental health conditions such as suicidal thoughts, crisis, and attempts. They have a page that has a host of videos, stories, and resources for individuals to view to get a better understanding on suicidality, and what that could mean for loved ones: https://afsp.org/lived-experience/
Introduction to supporting those at risk is the first module of the course, which is a 60-minute presentation that provides individuals with an overview on how to support someone with a lived experience, including the research about suicide and the recovery process. Additionally, AFSP trainers will provide strategies for helping support someone with lived experience.
Finding Hope: guidance for supporting those at-risk is the second module of the course, which is an in-person 90-minute presentation that provides practical information for those supporting someone with a lived experience, including education and resources on the recovery after a suicidal crisis, warning signs, safety planning, and crisis response. Additionally, AFSP trainers will provide individuals with self-care strategies as they support someone with lived experience.
To get signed up for the course and their modules, please utilize this following link to find a chapter near you: Click Here
Mental Health America provides a fully online and free online screening tool for a variety of mental health conditions to assist in determining if you are experiencing symptoms of a mental health condition. These are a quick snapshot of the symptoms and potential diagnosis someone could be battling with, and they suggest taking your results to a physician for a comprehensive evaluation and provide options on how to get support. They have screeners for depression, anxiety, ADHD, bipolar, postpartum depression, psychosis, addiction, eating disorder, PTSD, and self-injury. Anxiety and depression are both in English and Spanish.
SAMHSA has a informational page about the different diagnosis in these screeners, and provides tips and a helpline for individuals struggling with a mental health condition: Click Here