Month: November 2024

  • Nov 29: No Maintenance

    Nov 29: No Maintenance

    We are announcing that our website will skip its usual weekly maintenance from 5:30 AM – 8:30 AM PT.

    Skipped Maintenance Date

    Date: 11/29

    What to Expect

    The website will be accessible, and posts will be updated and published throughout the week instead of having a large volume published during the usual maintenance time.

    How to Report Issues

    If you have any questions or concerns about this skipped maintenance service, please contact webmaster@namicontracosta.org

    Thank you for your understanding and continued support.

  • Notice: Office Closed Nov. 28-Dec. 1

    Notice: Office Closed Nov. 28-Dec. 1

    Dear Community Members,

    Please note that the NAMI CC (National Alliance on Mental Illness, Contra Costa) office will close early on November 27th (Thanksgiving Eve) and November 28th to December 1st to support our 4th Annual “Leave No One Behind” Thanksgiving Warm Lunch Meal, Thanksgiving, and the Friday and Saturday after Thanksgiving. We will resume operations on December 2nd.

    As we take this time to engage in the spirit of thankfulness and giving back to the community by supporting those who sleep under the stars (unsheltered), we encourage all to get involved in the community and to practice self-care and thankfulness.

    If you have any concerns during our closure, please feel free to call us at (925) 942-0767. Though the office will be closed, we are here to support you.

    Our office will reopen and resume regular operations on Monday, December 2, 2024.

    Thank you for your understanding and support.

    Sincerely,
    The NAMI CC Team
    info@namicontracosta.org
    (925) 942-0767

  • Winter 2025 Volunteer Module Training

    Winter 2025 Volunteer Module Training

    Thank you so much for your interest in beginning, or continuing, to volunteer with NAMI Contra Costa. You are cordially invited to attend the upcoming Winter 2025 5-Module Training in January! You’re helping improve outcomes for those impacted by mental illness.

    When and How to Join

    Apply as a volunteer through our webpage: Become a Volunteer

    Register for our volunteer training in January.

    Registration form

    Training Details

    Our Five-Module Weekly Hybrid Class will be held through January 14th to February 11th from 5:30 p.m. – 6:45 p.m over the course of five weeks.

    Module Topics

      • Module I: Volunteer Orientation and History of NAMI CC

      • Module II: Mental Health 101

      • Module III: Crash Course, Navigating the Behavioral Health Care System in Contra Costa

      • Module IV: Better Understanding of Conservatorship and Other Legislation and Criminal Justice Issues

      • Module V: Cultural Responsiveness, Ethics and Self-Care

    To Join Online

    Join Volunteer Training Module

    Meeting ID: 840 0346 3298

    Have Questions?

    Please contact the individuals below if you have questions or concerns about this volunteer training session.

    Michele O’Keefe
    (707) 410-0296
    michele@namicontracosta.org

    Shelly Ji
    (925) 765-8232
    shelly@namicontracosta.org

  • Managing Post-Election Stress and Holiday Blues

    Managing Post-Election Stress and Holiday Blues

    Join us on Wednesday, November 20th at 9 am in our effort to support those dealing with a difficult time due to the holiday season and our 2nd effort for those still reeling from the post-election blues. We will offer self help tools.

    There’s no time better than now to lift up prayers and thoughts of encouragement. If you need support and can’t wait, please contact us at NAMI CC at (925) 942-0767.

    Time & Location

    Wednesday, November 20 at 9 AM

    ZOOM MEETING ID: 870 3688 8312

  • [TODAY] Thanksgiving Warm Lunch Meal 2024

    [TODAY] Thanksgiving Warm Lunch Meal 2024

    NAMI CC is bringing back our Fourth Annual Thanksgiving Warm Lunch Meal as a part of our “Leave No One Behind” Program. Join us in helping those who sleep underneath the stars! We start through feeding, but our focus is on making a life saving connection.

    Locations & Time

    Wednesday, November 27, 2024 from 11:30 PM – 1:30 PM

    Locations:

    “Tom’s Field”
    Corner of A Street and E. 6th Street
    Antioch, CA 94509



    Todos Santos Plaza
    2151 Salvio St, Concord CA 94520



    For more information, please contact our Homeless Outreach Coordinators:

    Antioch:
    (925) 435-8874

    Alfonzo Edwards
    alfonzo.edwards@namicontracosta.org

    Concord:
    (925) 708-8018

    Jesse Robbins
    (925) 708-8018
    jesse.robbins@namicontracosta.org

  • Support Our 2024 Sock Drive!

    Support Our 2024 Sock Drive!

    Join us for our annual holiday sock drive! We are again responding to the need for unworn socks, which continue to be the most requested items for those who are unsheltered.

    Please drop off unworn socks at our office, located at:

    2151 Salvio St, Ste V
    Concord, CA 94520

    Stop by during business hours:

    • Mon-Th: 8:30 AM – 7:00 PM
    • Fri: 8:30 AM – 4:00 PM
    • Sat: 10:00 AM – 2:00 PM
    • Sun: Closed

    We invite you to join us as we distribute the items to the unsheltered in various local locations on Christmas morning for those among us who sleep underneath the stars.

    Hundreds of tagged socks, masks, hand sanitizer, candy canes and cookie care packages will be dropped off to Contra Costa County mental health agencies and clinics.

    Thank you for continuing to support those most impacted by mental illness this 2024 holiday season.

    Please contact:

    Shelly Ji
    (925) 765-8232
    shelly@namicontracosta.org

    or call the office at (925) 942-0767 for more information.

  • NAMI CC NCO Club

    NAMI CC NCO Club

    Please join our monthly NAMI Contra Costa NCO Club, hosted on the 2nd Thursday of each month.

    NCO Club Purpose: To talk without judgement about our lived experience in the military and our lessons learned. This is a place to be to share “war stories” and chop it up about stateside and global experiences during active duty as well as experience with reentry upon discharge from active duty. 

    These “Talk About It” sessions are intended to talk through anything and all things with nothing being off limits to the participants…but always done with decorum and respect. Our meeting will be mostly reconnaissance to establish a baseline for information exchange.

    Facilitated by:

    Phil Arnold
    (925) 942-0767
    philip.arnold@namicontracosta.org

    Meeting ID: 867 2226 1053


    Zoom Link

  • Help Those who Sleep Underneath the Stars 2024

    Help Those who Sleep Underneath the Stars 2024

    Dear NAMI Contra Costa Supporter,

    NAMI CC greatly appreciates all the dedicated and committed supporters we’ve had over the last year. We’ve done a great job improving outcomes for older adults. Our Older Adult support group provided many with a space where they could find encouragement, companionship, and a sense of independence. We couldn’t have done it without you!

    This year, we have decided to focus our attention on the members of our community who sleep under the stars. You may be aware that each year Contra Costa County does a homelessness count. Sadly, the numbers have increased by 18% this year. We know that many of those individuals are only homeless because they were untreated for their mental health, which often leads to self medication and strained relationships that make it difficult for them to remain in their family home. According to the CASPEH (California Statewide Study of People Experiencing Homelessness) report by UCSF, 82% of Californians experiencing homelessness reported having a serious mental health condition, and 1 in 10 Californians meet the criteria for a substance use disorder.

    We have been given the opportunity through the city of Concord to lift up our “Leave No One Behind” program, and will be connecting those words to the recent implementation of Care Court. We hope to identify individuals who fit that criteria, and build the type of relationships with them that will allow them to finally get the supportive loving care they desire, and deserve. However, we need you. We’re not okay with having only two branches of our program, one in Concord and one unfunded in Antioch, knowing that unsheltered individuals who live with mental health challenges are across our entire county, desperately needing assistance.

    We’d like to hire two homeless outreach coordinators to position themselves to start addressing the needs of individuals across our county, and getting them, when appropriate, connected to Care Court. This is an effort that we do not want to fail at. We want to complement the work Contra Costa County Behavioral Health is doing. We recognize that many of our staff members have been where these individuals are, so we know that we carry the skill set, and more importantly, the empathy and compassion, to make a difference.

    We’re asking each of our community members to pitch in and help us with this. No dollar amount is too small; however, our ultimate goal is $100,000. Let’s get there together!

    Donations are tax-deductible and will allow NAMI CC to continue its mission:
    To provide support, outreach, education and advocacy to individuals living with and families impacted by mental illness.

    Sincerely,
    Gigi R. Crowder
    CEO

    La Tanyua Brown-Thompson
    President

  • Notice: Office Closed for Nov. 11

    Notice: Office Closed for Nov. 11

    Dear Community Members,

    Please note that the NAMI CC (National Alliance on Mental Illness, Contra Costa) office will be closed on Monday, November 11, 2024, in observance of Veterans Day.

    As we honor our veterans, we also encourage everyone to take a moment to prioritize mental wellness. Remember, even small acts of self-care can make a difference in maintaining your mental health.

    If you have any concerns during our closure, please feel free to call us at (925) 942-0767. Though the office will be closed, we are here to support you.

    Our office will reopen and resume normal operations on Tuesday, November 12, 2024.

    Thank you for your understanding and support.

    Sincerely,
    The NAMI CC Team
    info@namicontracosta.org
    (925) 942-0767

  • November 2024 General Meeting

    Next Steps in Preparing for CARE Court

    When & Where

    This meeting was held over Zoom on Thursday, November 21st, 2024 from 7 PM to 8:30 PM.

    *Note: We have a page with all information covered from this presentation on our new CARE Court Page. Please click this button to visit it.

    Agenda

    The General Meeting began at 7 PM.

    NAMI CC Announcements:

    • President La Tanyua Brown-Thompson
    • Dr. Cri Campbell-Schine
    • Legislative updates from Doug Dunn

    Meeting Description

    For our November General Meeting, we will utilize the time to advance our efforts to support Contra Costa County as we implement the Community Assistance, Recovery and Empowerment (CARE) Court. CARE Court is a new framework to get people with mental health and substance use disorders the support and care they need. CARE plans ensure participants receive a broad range of necessary services, including short-term stabilization medications, wellness and recovery supports, and connection to other social services such as housing.

    NAMI CC staff, allies, and attendees of our Care Court Information and Listening Session held on October 25, 2024 will debrief and share their thoughts. NAMI Contra Costa is excited about moving toward next steps. We invite family members who have anxiously been waiting for this Act to be implemented in Contra Costa County in Cohort 2 in December 2024 to get more information about how to advocate for their loved ones.

    Good News! NAMI CC’s “Leave No One Behind” program has been awarded a $200,000 grant from the City of Concord (the largest city in the county) to address the needs of the Unsheltered. It is our desire to spread this approach across the county and will continue the work in Antioch (second largest city in the county) where we launched the “Leave No One Behind” program three years ago. Please join us as we discuss Care Court and other legislation including Prop 1 and learn more about how the election results of Tuesday, November 5th, 2024 will impact us all.

    Questions, Comments, and Closed Captioning

    If you have Questions or Comments for our speaker during the presentation, you may contact Cri Campbell-Schine at cri@namicontracosta.org.

    Closed Caption Translation is available in various languages for any of NAMI CC’s General Meetings on Zoom. Attendees can select the language of their choosing. RSVP to cri@namicontracosta.org by November 21, 2024 if you require audio language translation.

    November 2024 General Meeting Flyer

  • The Mental Health Crisis Facing LGBTQ+ Women

    The Mental Health Crisis Facing LGBTQ+ Women

    Written by Gilian Foerster, NAMI CC 2024 Intern

    The struggles in mental health from members of the LGBTQ+ community, or anyone lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer or questioning, intersex, asexual, and more, specifically LGBTQ+ women, are highlighted in an article from National Public Radio. A new study from the Urvashi Vaid National LGBTQ+ Women’s Community Survey offers a reminder of how discrimination largely affects marginalized groups and communities. The study underlines not only the present high rates of mental illness within LGBTQ women, but also talks about systematic barriers that bar them from accessing care.

    The report comes from an analysis of Urvashi’s national survey of 5,000 LGBTQ+ respondents who previously or currently identify as a woman, conducted between June 2021 and June 2022. The survey revealed that 22% of LGBTQ+ women have attempted suicide, a statistic that exceeds the national average. It also found that over half of respondents live with anxiety or depression. The National Association on Mental Illness reports that the national averages for anxiety falls at about 19 percent and the Center for Disease Control and Prevention reports the national average of depression to be around 18 percent. The Urvashi Vaid survey found 44 percent of LGBTQ+ women survey respondents live with anxiety and 51 percent with depression, both of these statistics are more than double the national averages of 18 and 19 percent. These results fall in line with other research showing how race, gender, and sexual orientation expands mental and health disparities. For many LGBTQ+ people of color, experiences of systemic discrimination not only add to distress, but contribute to chronic health issues. 

    The survey shows that even though LGBTQ+ women face health challenges, many are unable to or unwilling to access care. While 77% of the US has a primary care physician, just over half LGBTQ+ women reported having a primary care physician. Women delay or avoid care because of cost and fear of discrimination. Savy Elahian, who led the data analysis for this report, within the NPR article states, “Historically, medical spaces have not been safe for us.” This reinforces the implications that women in the LGBTQ+ community have historically faced discomfort in medical environments and even brought into these environments to be experimented and tested on. These fears could play a role in the 14% of LGBTQ+ women who’ve never gotten a pap smear and the 1 in 3 that have never been screened for cervical cancer. LGBTQ+ women are missing out on important preventative measures and are nearly twice as likely to develop cervical cancer.

    Despite the hurdles the community faces, community led care has become a vital resource. Having these peer support networks, advocacy organizations, and community health initiatives are crucial in providing informed care and helping people navigate healthcare systems. Addressing the mental health crisis with LGBTQ+ women requires more than just improving access to care, it means creating healthcare spaces that are affirming and culturally competent. Medical institutions must invest in training providers to understand and serve LGBTQ+ patients with empathy and respect.

  • Nov. 10 AAPI Monthly Seminar

    Nov. 10 AAPI Monthly Seminar

    Chinese Immigrants’ Stressors & Worries

    This November, NAMI CC’s AAPI Team presents “Chinese Immigrants’ Stressors & Worries: Understanding the Sources of Stress and Anxiety of Chinese Immigrants and Learning to Intervene and Cope with Them.”

    About the Speaker

    Dr. Xu Jing

    • Critute trem stantia University School of
    • Education, Santa Clara University Counseling Psychology Program
    • Doctorate in Clinical Psychology from California
      Southern University

    We will discuss the following topics:

    • Common Sources of Anxiety and Stress in the Daily Life of Chinese Immigrants
    • How Chinese immigrants struggle to cope with anxiety and stress and the consequences
    • How to properly and efficiently cope with anxiety and stress
    • How to handle stress in the neurodiverse population
      (ADHD, Autism)
    • Resources for mental health services for Chinese immigrants

    Note: this presentation will be conducted in Mandarin Chinese, but captioning may be enabled for other languages!

    When & Where

    Pacific USA Time

    11/10/2024, Sunday
    (PDT) 3 PM – 4:30 PM

    On Zoom:

    Meeting ID: 823 4631 4790
    PASSWORD: 574985