Brochures, Fact Sheets, Guides and Toolkits

Building sustainable consumer run organizations
This manual, created through the University of Washington and the Self Help Empowerment and Evaluation Alliance, explores the recovery model and how to build a consumer-run organization. To help with preparation for building a consumer-run organization, this manual provides guidance on surveying community needs, a basic checklist for getting the organization started, funding resources, details on management, and sustainability and accountability. It also includes sample documents for readers to reference.

2012 join the voices for recovery: It's worth it; National Recovery Month toolkit
This National Recovery Month toolkit provided through the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) is a resource for mental and substance use disorder information. According to the SAMHSA Store Web site, it "provides tools and educational materials to distribute in communities and during local events." It covers a broad range of topics related to recovery and recovery-related events and campaigns, including media outreach, targeted outreach, and lived experiences of people in recovery.

Creating and Facilitating Peer Support Groups
This section of the Community Tool Box toolkit gives readers tips on creating and leading peer support groups. It defines peer support groups, provides information on who could benefit from a peer support group, includes real situational examples to reference, and other tools, such as a PowerPoint presentation and a checklist, to help individuals with this process.

Building Communites from the Inside Out: A Path Toward Finding and Mobilizing a Community's Assets
This guide outlines strategies for communities to start asset-based development, an approach to community development in which local citizens' associations, community members and leaders, and institutions work together to build and repair their communities using an approach that focuses on identifying community strengths rather than deficiencies as the starting point in addressing community needs. This guide provides success stories of various communities across the United States and provides an introduction to strategies learned from neighborhood leaders.

Nuts and Bolts: A Technical Assistance Guide for Mental Health Consumer/Survivor Self-Help Groups
Individuals leading consumer/survivor-run organizations provide recommendations to others who want to develop their own organizations. This guide offers suggestions on a broad range of topics including developing a project plan, dealing with outside organizations including the media and the community, coalition building, quality assurance, group decisionmaking, and sustaining projects.

Recovery Advocacy Toolkit: Engaging Your Community
This toolkit highlights the benefits that recovery from addiction can have on a community. It goes on to describe ways community involvement in advocacy can enhance public perceptions of recovery and promote effective public policy. This toolkit provides action steps for community members based on their different roles in the community. Educators, faith community members, community coalitions, families, government/public officials, criminal justice professionals, business leaders, healthcare professionals, local media outlets, and addiction treatment providers are all provided with specific steps that will help in engaging and guiding the community toward effective and positive attitudes toward recovery.

Beat the stigma and discrimination! Four lessons for mental health advocates
This handbook focuses on correcting the disparity and increasing both opportunities and resources for people with mental illnesses by reviewing ways in which negative public attitudes might be reduced and more appropriate attitudes might be enhanced.

Resources, web pages, and internet links for faith communities
List of helpful resources for faith communities and NAMI affiliates which provide resources for persons of faith to help congregations in their understanding of mental illnesses.
Contact information:
National Alliance on Mental Illness
Colonial Place Three
2107 Wilson Blvd., Suite 300
Arlington, VA 22201-3042
Phone: (703) 524-7600

Maryland rural families speak: About mental health
This article briefly discusses the findings from a study of families in two Maryland counties. It provides insight into the experiences of rural, low-income families.