The HRM Chapter of the Schizophrenia Society of Nova Scotia

The HRM Chapter of the Schizophrenia Society of Nova Scotia

Family Education & Support Meeting

Monday, April 20^th, 2009

7:00 pm to 9:00 pm

Room 6015

Halifax Infirmary, QEII Health Sciences Centre

1796 Summer Street,

Halifax, Nova Scotia

(Summer Street South Elevators)

Presenting:

7:00 - 8:00 pm Dr. Zenovia Ursuliak

Nova Scotia Early Psychosis Program

Motivational Interviewing (Part Five):

Building Better Relationships — Particularly with Those Who Lack Insight — Through Effective Communication Skills

This technique is promoted by Dr. Xavier Amador in his book I Am Not Sick, I Don’t Need Help! It utilizes the LEAP (listen, empathize, agree, partner) approach.

Please join us in learning about Motivational Interviewing and role playing various scenarios. (Role playing is on a voluntary basis only.)

8:15 - 9:00 pm Group Discussion

Continue role playing.

For more information, please contact Donna Methot at (902) 8658, or send an email to hrmchapterssns@accesswave.ca.

Accomplishments of the Schizophrenia Society of Nova Scotia

Road To Recovery: Supporting Families As Partners in Mental Health Care

The mission of the Schizophrenia Society of Nova Scotia (SSNS) is to improve the lives of those affected by schizophrenia and psychosis through education, public policy, and research. The SSNS has achieved many significant milestones in advancing our mission over the past two years, including:

• establishment, in partnership with researchers at Dalhousie University and elsewhere, of the Nova Scotia Psychosis Research Unit;

• a new Chapter of the SSNS established in the Halifax Regional Municipality which focuses specifically on supporting families and friends of individuals who live with schizophrenia and other psychotic disorders;

• an ongoing evaluation of procedures for implementation of the Involuntary Psychiatric Treatment Act; including advocating with government and service providers, providing one-on-one assistance to families and friends of those living with schizophrenia / psychosis, and conducting education and support workshops on the Act;

• appointment, by the Nova Scotia Ministers of Justice and Health, of the executive director of the SSNS to the Expert Panel examining the phenomenon referred to as excited delirium;

• standing at the ongoing inquiry looking into the November 2007 death of Howard Hyde;

• a Mental Health Court is scheduled to open in Dartmouth on November 1st, 2009, due, in part, to the discussions which the SSNS is having with Nova Scotia Department of Justice;

• provision of a grant by the Mental Health Foundation of Nova Scotia to deliver Strengthening Families Together at four locations in the Halifax Regional Municipality, in Amherst, and twice in Kentville;

• involvement in the development of guidelines for Advanced Directives and an Advanced Directives Handbook with the Capital District Health Authority; commenting on provincial proposals for Personal Directives with associated changes to the Medical Consent Act;

• establishment of a new support group in the Halifax Regional Municipality specifically for individuals living with schizophrenia or other psychotic disorders; delivery of the Your Recovery Journey program will be an important function of this group;

• supporting Situation Appropriate Supportive Housing (SASH), a new program to create additional and enhanced housing to reduce homelessness and improve the quality of life of people with mental illness;

• in partnership with Cole Harbour / Eastern HRM Community Mental Health, administering the Janine Williams Memorial Bursary Fund and its associated bursary program;

• contributing to the renewal of the structure and function of the Schizophrenia Society of Canada, particularly to clarify its role in the Federation of Canadian Schizophrenia Societies;

• a member of Hiring Committee for the new Dr. Paul Janssen Chair in Psychotic Disorders at Dalhousie University;

• media coverage on the CTV National News (Canada-wide, TV); CTV Newsnet (Canada-wide, TV); CTV News at 6 (Halifax, TV); CBC News Canada Now (Halifax, TV); Global Maritimes Evening News (Maritimes, TV); CBC Information Morning (Halifax, radio); CBC Maritime Noon (Maritimes, radio); many CBC Radio 1 newscasts (Nova Scotia); as well as articles published in The Chronicle Herald (Nova Scotia), Metro Canada – Halifax (Halifax), The National Post (Canada-wide), or posted on the Internet by CBC.ca (worldwide), Canada.com (worldwide), or by The Canadian Press (worldwide, some of these stories were also published in newspapers across Canada);

• a SSNS weblog (www.blog.ssns.ca), launched in November 2006, has now received over 45,300 visits; and

• a completely redesigned SSNS website (www.ssns.ca) was unveiled in early 2007.

We know we have much more work to do, particularly:

• advocacy for those living with schizophrenia and other psychotic disorders;

• promotion of better living conditions for these individuals;

• improving access to dental care and medical treatment (including early detection of psychosis);

• better support for families;

• monitoring of the new Mental Health Court system;

• education of professionals, the public, families, and those living with schizophrenia / psychosis about the Involuntary Psychiatric Treatment Act; and

• further development of our provincial network of Chapters.

Public Lecture & Panel Discussion on Psychosis

Mind

Matters

Public Lecture & Panel Discussion on Psychosis

Psychosis can have a significant impact on the wellbeing of individuals, families and society in general.

7:00 pm, Wednesday, May 6th, 2009

Holiday Inn Harbourview

McNab A & B Rooms

101 Wyse Road, Dartmouth, Nova Scotia

Sponsored by the Dr. Paul Janssen Chair in Psychotic Disorders in collaboration with:

The Nova Scotia Psychosis Research Unit (NSPRU)

The Schizophrenia Society of Nova Scotia (SSNS)

The Nova Scotia Early Psychosis Program (NSEPP)

REFRESHMENTS WILL BE SERVED. FREE PARKING

This lecture and panel discussion will allow the audience to appreciate what psychosis is and what it is not, and how to recognize symptoms early to enable a successful recovery. This lecture will also make the latest advances in psychosis research available and understandable.

Keynote speaker: Dr. Philip Tibbo

Following the keynote speaker a panel will be available for more informal questions and discussion. This panel will provide perspectives on psychosis by including a person who has experienced psychosis, a family member, the executive director of the SSNS, an occupational therapist, and other members of an interdisciplinary treatment team.

Please feel free to forward this email to others and to post the attached flyer in your workplace.

My Personal Recovery

At the present moment I am just bubbling over with joy and happiness. I cannot hardly put it into words. My heart, mind, and soul is full of peace and tranquility. I just love life and I love being alive. I have meaning and purpose in life. I am a productive member of society.

These things are a direct result of my recovery from schizophrenia, obsessive compulsive disorder, addiction, and alcoholism. For me personally recovery is truly possible. I have been recovering for nine years now. Life just gets better and better as time rolls on. Truly there are days when things are not very good but this only happens once in a while. Most of the time things are just great. When I was ill I went through much pain, suffering, torture, and torment most of the time. Now things are different. Most of the time now I am full of joy, happiness, and peace of mind.

How am I recovering? The foundation of my recovery is medication. My meds have removed the symptoms of my mental illness. After my medication relieved me of my symptoms I was free to receive psycho-social treatments. As a result of both treatments I am truly recovering. If I continue following my treatment regime I will continue to recover. Although relapse is a possibility I am hoping that I never have a relapse. I don't want to go back to that awful hell I was living in. I want to continue recovering until the day that I leave this world.

I am so grateful and thankful to God for my recovery I cannot express it in words.

I truly hope that if my readers have a mental illness that you too will recover. It is possible. Go to the mental health profession and they can help you find recovery. They can administer medication and treat you with psycho-social treatments. This would greatly improve your chances of recovery. Good luck with your recovery.

Concurrent Disorder

I have started a blog on concurrent disorders. By that I mean those that have one or more mental illness plus the disease of addiction and/or alcoholism. This is a real major problem in the mental health community. Treating concurrent disorders is very different from just treating a mental illness by itself or addiction by itself. The treatment needs to be integrated. Both problems need to be treated simultaneously. This blog will be discussing spiritual concepts due to the fact that the only way to recover from addiction or alcoholism is through a relationship with God. Addicts are powerless over their addiction. Addicts have a dilemma. No power. Only a power greater than ourselves can deliver us from the power of addiction. Personally I believe that that higher power is God. I am recovering from concurrent disorder only because of God's divine providence and intervention. Without God's power I would never recover from my addiction and alcoholism. If my readers are interested in reading up on concurrent disorder check it out.

To go to my blog on concurrent disorder click on the link below.

Concurrent Disorder