When I first got out of graduate school I felt like I knew exactly what I wanted to do;  I was going to give everyone all the knowledge I had acquired in the hope that this would help heal their pain.  Sounds good right, but try to translate that into an actual job.  Well I did, I became a therapist and worked as a mental health family support specialist.  I got the opportunity to work with the families of people suffering from a mental illness and provide an educational 12-week series on mental illness.  Now years later, I still want to continue spreading the knowledge I learned about mental illness.   Over the next week, I will offer some facts on different mental illness diagnosis in the hope that the information will bring awareness to a very important and ignored topic within the Black community.

Mental Illness Awareness Week 2012: Oct. 7-13, 2012

In 1990, the U.S. Congress established the first full week of October as Mental Illness Awareness Week (MIAW) in recognition of NAMI’s efforts to raise mental illness awareness. Since 1990, mental health advocates across the country have joined together during the first full week of October in sponsoring many kinds of activities.  http://www.nami.org/template.cfm?section=mental_illness_awareness_week

Topics

October 7, 2012: Mental Illness Awareness Week

October 8, 2012:  Overview of Mental Illness

October 9, 2012: Mental Illness in the Black Community…

October 10, 2012: Depression in the Black Community

October 11, 2012: Bipolar in the Black Community

October 12, 2012: Schizophrenia in the Black Community

October 13, 2012: Suicide in the Black Community