NAMI Joins Airwaves in Mental Health Month Awareness Series

Jasper - The National Alliance on Mental Illness joined Charlie Wayne on WITZ Wednesday morning to promote mental health awareness.

Since 1949, May has been designated "Mental Health Awareness" month. In an ongoing series during Live at 7:05 with Charlie Wayne on 104.7 WITZ, a trio of representatives took the microphone to spread the word.

National Alliance on Mental Health, or NAMI, representatives Leah Hayworth and Ann Czerwinski, as well as Kenny Eck of the Dubois County Purdue Extension, shared the causes and effects of mental illness.

Czerwinski shared about the organization and the support it provides.

It's the nation's largest grassroots mental health organization dedicated to building better lives for the millions of Americans affected by mental illness," Czerwinski said. "Unlike a lot of support groups, NAMI is made up of the family members of the person who has mental illness. It's an organization that helps to support them, educate them, and lead them into advocacy for their family member."

It's estimated that mental illness impacts the lives of at least one in four adults and one in 10 children, about 60 million Americans.

While mental illnesses are caused by chemical imbalances in the brain, they can also be brought on or exacerbated by work stresses. Prevalent in Southwestern Indiana, says Eck, is life on the farm.

"If you're out there on some of those farms - you've got beautiful places to work, hard working people in Dubois County - but, sometimes you're out there by yourselves," Eck said. "Some of those stresses can really get to you because you're worried about, 'What's for that cow going to be?', or, 'Will I get those crops in before the next rain storm hits?'"

"All of that leads up to farm stress because on a farm, especially, you have a lot of things you can't control," Eck added.

The Dubois County NAMI support group currently meets in person at 6:30 p.m. on the third Thursday of the month in the Cherry Room of the Library at the Thyen-Clark Cultural Center. The group does hold additional classes in an online setting.

More information can be found online at www.facebook.com/namiduboiscounty/

Today's full conversation can be listened to here:

Next up in the Mental Health Awareness series with Charlie Wayne on May 11th: Lisa Flamion, Christine Vinson, Paige Mundy, and Elaine Kreilein, representing the four major Dubois County School Corporations will join the conversation.

May 18th: Suicide Prevention and Support Efforts in Dubois County with Mitch Fleck, of A Step Above, Kendra Nichols, of Locking Arms for Suicide Awareness, and Janet Schnell and Janet Smith for Survivors of Suicide of Dubois County.

May 25th: Substance Abuse - Dubois County Substance Abuse Council and CARES will be represented by Jenna Bieker, Brooke Lampert, and Candy Neal.