NAMI Westside Los Angeles December Update

Come for the help, stay for the hope.

December 2019 Newsletter

Happy Holidays!

We hope you and your family are enjoying the holiday season and looking forward to a fresh start in 2020.

Here are tips for maintaining good mental health during the holiday season .

Our office will be closed December 23 to January 2. Also see special hours below for our support groups. (Speaking of support groups, we have a new one for Family-to-Family class graduates!)

As always, if you need help, there are resources on our website .

We look forward to connecting with you again in 2020!

Community Support

Family and Peer Support Groups

Special holiday scheduling : Our support groups will not meet on Tuesday, December 24, Wednesday, December 25, Tuesday, December 31, or Wednesday, January 1.

Family Support Group at Daniel’s Place in Santa Monica

2nd and 4th Thursday of the Month, 7-8:30 pm

1619 Santa Monica Blvd., Santa Monica

Special holiday hours : There will be no family support group at Daniel’s Place during the month of December.

Family Support Group at the Brentwood Branch Library

2nd and 4th Saturdays of the month, 10-11 am

11820 San Vicente Blvd., Brentwood

Family Support Group at Didi Hirsch Community Mental Health Center

Mondays, 6:30-8 pm

4760 Sepulveda Blvd., Culver City

NEW! Family-to-Family Class Graduates Support Group

2nd and 4th Wednesday of the month, 7:30-9 pm

1444 Roxbury Dr., Los Angeles

Special holiday hours: The group will not meet on Wednesday, December 25 or Wednesday, December 31

Peer Support Group at Cedars-Sinai

Tuesdays, 6:30-8 pm

8700 Beverly Blvd., Los Angeles, Briskin Conference Room

Special holiday hours: The group will not meet on Tuesday, December 24 or Tuesday, December 31

Peer Support Group at Didi Hirsch in Culver City

Wednesdays, 6:30-8:30 pm

Special holiday hours: The group will not meet on Wednesday, December 25 or Wednesday, December 31

We have a Winter 2020 Peer-to-Peer class starting in January. The 8-week class is Friday nights in Santa Monica, starting January 9. Find out more about the class (it's free!) and register online.

We have 2 new Westside LA Family-to-Family sessions for Winter 2020, starting in January; Mondays at Cedars-Sinai and Tuesdays in Pacific Palisades. Find out more about the class (it's free!) and register online.

Our Classes

Community Events

Janis Black Warner Monthly Speaker Series

Topic: Psychotherapy with Schizophrenia Without Using Anti-Psychotic Medication

Speaker: Daniel Paul, Ph.D. is a Fellow of the International Psychoanalytical Association and the American Psychological Association who has a specialty in psychotherapy with schizophrenia, dissociative identity disorders, adult survivors of sexual abuse and the treatment of borderline and psychotic personalities.

Date : Wednesday, January 8, 7 pm

Place : The Vista Del Mar Child Study Center: 3200 Motor Ave., Los Angeles 90069 ( map )

Community Outreach

Lanetta Wahlgren UCLA Internship Program

We are proud to announce the new Lanetta Wahlgren UCLA Internship Program at NAMI Westside LA. This program was launched with the support of mental health advocate Lanetta Wahlgren, whose strong interests in academia and the mental health field is helping us pave the way for the next generation of mental health advocacy.

Family-to-Family Teacher Training

We're so pleased to report that we trained a new crop of NAMI teachers and fierce mental health advocates at a Family- to-Family teacher training, which was coordinated by our Program Director Tim Davis and taught by our Board Co-President Sharon Dunas and Daniel Myatt of NAMI Urban Los Angeles.

Community Action

Action Alert

Good news: The FCC unanimously approved the proposal for new 3-digit number as Suicide Prevention Hotline. This is a great first step!

Here’s how you can help to help make 9-8-8 a reality:

Contact your Senators, urging them to support this .

Contact your your U.S. Representative, urging them to support this .

Community Voices

The monthly question from NAMI California, to help reduce stigma and inspire others in our communities:

How do you practice self-care?

Share your answer!