⭐ Celebrate Mental Health Month this Saturday!

Join us for an amazing community event this weekend at NAMIWalks Mass on the 20th. We will have Boston 25 News anchors, DMH Commissioner Brooke Doyle, and poets and speakers sharing their stories. And, of course, we'll have lots of free snacks, water, and food trucks to keep you fueled up for the ~1 mile route. Bring the little ones along to enjoy the Fun Zone, which will have a Snow Cone Machine, giant Jenga, and more games and activities! You can also bring your furry friends to walk alongside you (as long as they remain leashed.) Get started now: 

• Sign up to walk as an individual or create a team for your company, friend group, or family members!
• Make a donation to a participant or team to keep our mental health programs FREE.
• Check out our updated Walk Page to see the food trucks, games, and activities that will be there as well as a helpful FAQ!

Family Support Group Facilitator Training

When: Saturday, June 10 - Sunday, June 11

Time: 8:45 am - 6:00 pm

We are looking for individuals who are interested in being trained to be Family Support Group Facilitators. NAMI Family Support Group is a free, peer-led, confidential support group for family members, caregivers, and loved ones of individuals living with mental illness.

Interested and able to attend both days of the training? Email Ilya Cherkasov at icherkasov@namimass.org to register.

June SOS Presentation

When: Tuesday, June 20

Time: 5 – 6 pm

Register for June SOS presentation

When: This Saturday, May 20th, 9 am - 1 pm

Where: Artesani Park, 1255 Soldiers Field Road, Brighton, MA 02135

Join us for our 19th Annual NAMIWalks Massachusetts!

When: Tuesday, May 23rd

Time: 7:00 pm - 8:00 pm

Howard is the co-founder and on the leadership team of the Metro Boston and Southeast Recovery Learning Communities, is a Certified Peer Specialist, and a Certified Psychosocial Rehabilitation Practitioner. He will speak about his experiences with mental health challenges, his involvement with numerous organizations, boards and committees; and how these experiences intersect and overlap with each other. 

Zoom Information for the Speakers' Series

Speakers' Series URL: ID# 6178550006

Passcode: Email ZoomInfo@dbsaboston.org for the most updated password. You will receive an auto-response! 

When: Tuesday, May 23rd

Time: 6:30 pm

Where: WBUR CitySpace Theater, 890 Commonwealth Ave, Boston, MA 02155

Flourishing Families Presents This Is My Brave - The Show, an evening of family members telling their brave stories about parenting young adults living with a mental health and/or substance use condition. This Show is sponsored by the Ruderman Family Foundation. Join them on Tuesday, May 23rd at 6:30pm ET for this very special mental health storytelling event! Tickets are free but donations are welcome. Proceeds of this event will benefit This Is My Brave, Inc. Register for This Is My Brave event on 5/23

When: Friday, June 9th

Time: Reception- 6:00 pm, Performance- 7:00 pm

Where: West lawn side, Asa Waters Mansion, 123 Elm St, Millbury, MA

Daniel M. Clark, known as "The Singing Trooper", is a retired US Marine and MA State Trooper. He will perform along with his wife Mary Colarusso, a coloratura soprano who is a graduate of the Boston Conservatory of Music. Mary is known for her performances of opera and popular repertoire. All proceeds will support funding programs for the youth, teachers, and families of Millbury Public Schools in cooperation with NAMI. Tickets are $40 per person and space is limited. Contact Jane Cheetham at 508-523-2826 or email jane.cheetham@gmail.com.

When: Tuesday, June 13th

Time: 10:00 am - 12:00 pm

Are you or your family One Care members? Are you thinking about joining One Care? Share your experiences on One Care, ask questions, and hear from other One Care members. Register for One Care Implementation Town Hall.

When: Thursday, May 18th

Time: 6:30 pm - 7:30 pm

Michael Siena will talk about his recovery story followed by an in-depth description of his work within the Metro Boston Recovery Learning Community (MBRLC) over the last ten plus years. He will cover working on the Peer Support Line as well as working at the Boston Resource Center, giving details of the tools, resources and challenges involved with working in both settings. At the end of the talk, he will go over some things he learned over the years working in the MBRLC and as a person in recovery. For more info & meeting link, visit the PSAN website

When: Friday, May 19th

Time: 9:00 am - 3:00 pm

This year's conference promises to be an outstanding event, gathering virtually with Keynote Elizabeth Sweet, Public Health Advisor from SAMHSA's Office of Recovery and a mom with lived experience! After the keynote, they will move on to morning and afternoon workshops on a wide variety of topics within Children's Mental Health. Enjoy a day of learning and leave feeling inspired and connected. Read more and register to attend PPAL's Conference

When: Thursday, May 25 (Zoom)

Time: 7:00 – 8:30 pm

In this webinar, Jenny Woodworth, LISW, will define boundaries as they relate to familial relationships. Participants will learn why boundaries are necessary when supporting a loved one with a mood disorder and how to apply boundaries as a form of self-care. Register to join for a live webinar discussion or watch on demand after it airs

When: July 17th - 21th

Time: 1:00 - 3:00 pm

Explore app design and prototyping, learn about AI, and take charge of digital wellbeing. Featuring Wellesley College students and expert speakers on STEM Bring any level of social media knowledge! This year's workshop is generously funded by the Metrowest Women's Fund. Boston Metrowest Area girls are especially encouraged to apply. Learn more and register for Summer Digital Wellbeing Workshop for Girls

The Policy, Advocacy, and Communication (PAC) Team at NAMI Mass aims to provide direction and guidance on policy issues affecting mental health in the Commonwealth to Affiliates, state agencies, community stakeholders, advocates, and the general public.

View Our One-Pager With Priority Bills

If you weren't able to view our amazing panels live, you can watch the replays on our Facebook, YouTube, or website:

• Watch Crisis Response in MA Panel
• Watch Promoting Mental Health Equity in MA Panel

July 16, 2023, marks one year since the rollout of 988. As such, there is a lot of interest in your experience with 988. Eli Cahan is investigating the ups and downs of the 988 Lifeline rollout over the past year. If you or someone you know has had a positive or negative experience with 988 or is a frontline provider, please reach out to Eli via email at eli.cahan.-nd@abc.com or phone at 650-285-0702. This information can help assess how the first year of 988 is impacting Massachusetts residents experiencing a mental health crisis.” Does that sound better?

Join the weSPARC Insight Advisory Board! The Implementation Science & Practice Advances Research Center (iSPARC) is a Department of Mental Health Research Center of Excellence based at UMass Chan Medical School. iSPARC conducts research to enhance services for people with mental health and substance use conditions with the goal of promoting their recovery and improving their quality of life.

iSPARC's weSPARC Insight Stakeholder Advisory Board is looking for new members. We are looking for people w/ lived mental health experience, who have unique & valuable experiences to help advise and guide research projects aimed at improving mental health services. Help ensure our work makes a real difference to persons with lived experience of mental health conditions.

Interested? Apply to the weSPARC Insight Advisory Board here

Any questions? Email Celine Larkin at celine.larkin@umassmed.edu

NAMI Mass, a leading voice on mental health, has an opening for an Executive Assistant/Special Events Manager! This role may be a good fit if you are—or know—a well-rounded professional with a strong administrative skill set and experience with project management and event planning for large events. If you’re passionate about addressing incidences of traumatization and oppression by creating societal conditions that promote health and advance justice, please check out our full job posting for the Executive Assistant/Special Events Manager.

On May 4th, Temple Isaiah Mental Health Initiative welcomed guest speaker, Daniel Jackson, photographer, and creator of “Portraits of Resilience in Our Jewish Community,” a compilation of portraits and narratives aimed at reducing stigma and gaining understanding of mental health and wellbeing. A selection of narratives will be read by their authors followed by a panel Q&A. You can view the Zoom recording here. Passcode: R8Z^Z$d=

MAMH and the Kiva Centers are proud to introduce I Live This: Transforming Mental Health through Personal Connection, a podcast series exploring the way people draw on their own experiences to support others, innovate, and advocate for change. Tune in every Thursday through May to hear from community leaders, learn about different ways that individuals provide peer support in their work, and, we hope, deepen your understanding about the value of shared experiences to build personal connection. Episode one is now live! Join them as Lee Shuer talks about his pioneering work in de-cluttering (what some call "hoarding") and peer support. Learn more about Lee's journey to support other over-finders, understand his collection, and counter negativity here.

Happy Asian American & Pacific Islander Heritage Month! May is a time to honor and celebrate the rich and diverse cultures of Massachusetts' AAPI communities. It's also #MentalHealthMonth, so let's use this month to break down barriers and prioritize AAPI mental health. View the full collection of resources from our Compass Helpline specific to the AAPI community.

Transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) is a non-invasive procedure that uses a magnet to activate specific areas of the brain. TMS may be used to address symptoms of various mental health conditions. This study is a clinical trial seeking to improve the speed and effectiveness of TMS to treat symptoms of psychosis. The goal of this study is to better understand the use of TMS for psychosis and to improve non-medication treatment options for individuals with psychotic disorders.

Participation includes clinical interviews, cognitive testing, one week of TMS treatment sessions, and follow-up assessments. Participants will be compensated up to $1600. This study takes place at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center in Boston, Massachusetts. If you have questions or would like more information, please

contact Adam Beermann at (617) 632-7956 or abeerman@bidmc.harvard.edu. You may also complete a free, confidential screening survey.

Disability Policy Consortium recently launched a survey for Deaf, DeafBlind, Deaf Disabled, Hard of Hearing, and Late Deafened people in MA to give feedback about community members' experiences participating in the legislation and public policy process. You can access the survey in both written English and American Sign Language here.

DPC needs your help in identifying barriers to and opportunities for participation in the statewide legislative process, so that they can more effectively advocate for a more inclusive and accessible State House. Your voices and perspectives will provide them with actionable data and enable them to advance campaigns aimed at raising awareness among policymakers and the public about the Deaf and Hard Of Hearing community's needs and enhancing State House Communications Access accommodations: from extending public hearing notice periods, to increasing the availability of ASL interpreters, to improving live captioning and CART services.