HelpWho We Are
Who We Are
NAMI-NYC Changes Lives
“NAMI-NYC serves many who come to seek help, and NAMI brings out the part of us that wants to help others. People battered down by life come here and gain self-confidence. We feel accepted, even admired.”
– Hannah Craven, Support Group Facilitator
Lexi
“Even though I’m young, I have a voice. I want to use my experiences to help others. Younger people want and need resources for their mental health.” Even at a young age, Lexi, a high school junior at Nightingale on …
Erika
It can be so difficult navigating the mental health space, especially when you’re unsure how to help a loved one. For Erika, the haze began to clear when her sister was diagnosed with a mental health condition five years ago. …
Chloe
“I can’t help but wonder how different things might have been if my school had utilized NAMI-NYC programs like Ending the Silence. Opening up about my own experiences took immense courage—no one knew what I was going through. ETS could …
Tanisha
What brought you to NAMI-NYC? I had been managing my mental health on my own without a support system for almost 15 years. It was becoming unbearable. I desired a community and was looking for a culturally-specific space, being that …
Larry
When did you first become aware that you had a mental illness? I was first aware of something ‘not quite right’ as a sophomore in high school. Through college and my 20s, that ‘something’ became more evident – and troublesome …
Kinsey
When did you first become aware that you had a mental illness? It was really less about awareness for me and more about acceptance. I can’t remember exactly when I first started experiencing symptoms, but it was during my childhood. …
John
What brought you to NAMI-NYC? About 8 years ago, my son had his first episode of psychosis. My wife and I had no knowledge of mental illness, no idea what he was going through, and no idea how to help. …
Diana
When did you first become aware that you had a mental illness? This is a complicated question. I first started noticing symptoms around age 15, but I didn’t want to believe that I had mental illness, so I actively avoided …
Pam
How did you find NAMI-NYC? After one of my ill relative’s doctor visits, I asked where I could get help for myself. They told me about NAMI and gave me the Helpline number. I remember saying to myself, “What’s NAMI?” because …
Edythe
I’ve got 3 brothers who are diagnosed with mental illnesses. One of my brothers, who is diagnosed with schizophrenia–probably 10 years ago–spent so many years on the verge of homeless, filled with a lot of despair, really misunderstood by our …
Karen A.
How did you find NAMI? It was 2011. My daughter was 12 ½ and having increasingly extreme reactions. I started doing research, because I knew I was not dealing with the same kid I had been up to this point. …
Michael
What brought you to NAMI-NYC? I came to NAMI-NYC in 2006, 10 years after I had been diagnosed with bipolar disorder. In 2006, I had heard that NAMI was organizing a legislative trip to Albany to speak out against the …
Deniece
When my daughter Lucy was first diagnosed with bipolar disorder, I was in shock. I was confused, I was angry, I was hurt. I didn’t understand her behavior. The school would call and say come and get her. Then they …
Lyle
What brought you to NAMI? It was 2008. Another peer told me to check out NAMI’s Peer-to-Peer. “It’s a great class. And it’s free.” I loved it so much. I was elated when they asked me to be a Peer mentor. …
Fredi
What brought you to NAMI-NYC? My psychiatrist tried to get me to contact NAMI for ages. I finally called the Helpline, and it was recommended I take Peer-to-Peer. I absolutely loved it. In fact, I liked it so much, I took it …
Karen V.
What Brought Karen to NAMI Karen has a background in mental health—through both personal experience of dealing with anxiety and depression, and a Masters in Counseling Psychology. She wanted to get into advocacy and knew that advocacy was one part …
Sonja
Sonja has always been interested in mental health. She’s never really seen doctors or taken medication, though. She’s taken her recovery into her own hands. But one day in the spring of 2015, she Googled “public speaking mental health,” and …
Cynthia
Cynthia found NAMI a few times, actually. Her first experience of NAMI was at the Park Avenue location. Her therapist had recommended it. She decided to try out the Living With Bipolar Support Group. Cynthia had been struggling with her diagnosis …
Ashley
How Ashley Got Involved in NAMI Ashley started at NAMI by volunteering in the office. She was looking for a way to fill up her time, and thought that some reception work would be relaxing and easy. She was at …
Mitzi
In 2007, Mitzi was diagnosed with bipolar II disorder. She decided she wanted to get into mental health advocacy. In spring 2015 she looked into some opportunities in Vermont, where she lives part time. She trained at the NAMI affiliate …
Dionne
Since 1991, when she was 22 years old, Dionne has been cycling in and out of hospitals, diagnosed with schizoaffective disorder. She described it as a revolving door, being hospitalized 10 different times because she kept taking herself off her …
Gina
Gina was coming out of a depression at the end of 2011. She lives with bipolar disorder, and had just had a depressive episode. She wanted to do something for herself, something that would make her feel good. So she …
Arlene
In her late 50s Arlene was diagnosed with bipolar disorder. Soon after, she was introduced to NAMI-NYC by an In Our Own Voice presenter, who encouraged her to participate. But In Our Own Voice, where people living with mental illness go to …
Gerard
I was introduced to NAMI through a friend who asked me to join her NAMIWalks team. Once I saw the dedication and enthusiasm of the participants, I was hooked. I know, through my own struggles with mental illness, that fighting for one’s …
Patti
It was 1993, and Patti’s daughter was ill. She had a drug-induced psychotic disorder, and Patti and her husband were struggling to deal with it. Then her husband saw a notice in a hospital about a Family-to-Family meeting at NAMI. …
Donna
In 2010, Donna was hospitalized, diagnosed with bipolar disorder and PTSD. While she was there, the social worker told her about NAMI, and particularly recommended the Peer-to-Peer course. Donna’s therapist had also told her about NAMI, but the social worker at the …
Alice
Twenty years ago, Alice first heard the name NAMI from her therapist, who suggested Alice get involved as a way to both receive and provide support. At NAMI she could speak openly about her history of family dysfunction, including alcoholism …