Living with a mental health condition can be difficult for some people to deal with. Some people need to seek help to learn how to cope with their mental illness, but either don’t know where to go or are too afraid to speak up. American River College offers a safe space to process and recover from mental illness.

At ARC, students can meet with the National Alliance of Mental Illness (NAMI) twice a week to consult about mental health. According to Eric Bailey, the group’s program coordinator, NAMI is a nonprofit organization whose sole purpose is to help people and even their families with mental health conditions, and give them the support they need. 

NAMI comes to ARC to give students who are dealing with a mental illness a safe space to talk about their mental health problems. NAMI meets with students to provide a judgement free zone, according to NAMI’s page on ARC’s website.

Even if students don’t have health insurance, Bailey says they can still use NAMI’s services. People can come at no cost and they will provide help and resources to struggling students.

“Even if you don’t share, you still benefit from being there,” Bailey said. “Anything said within the group, will stay in the group.”

NAMI also holds family support groups where the whole family can participate to help support their loved ones that need guidance. 

At ARC, there are a number of NAMI employees who assist students in support group meetings, such as Bailey. Bailey sets up the meetings on campus and makes sure it runs smoothly. 

Bailey said he chose this career field because he was once in a position where he was struggling with his mental health.

 A few years ago before he joined NAMI, Bailey lost his job, his wife divorced him, and he even became homeless for a time. Bailey said he nearly lost the will to live and was placed on a psychiatric hold to prevent him from taking his own life.  

According to Bailey, it was then a peer of his who told him about NAMI and the services they offer. After going to support groups and seeking that help, he said he felt better and felt like he had a place in this world again.

After his recovery, Bailey said he decided he wanted to work for NAMI and help people who currently may be facing the same problems that he went through. He has been a member of NAMI since April 2018.

“I knew I wanted to give back,” Bailey said. “I feel if I can achieve a recovery, then I can help someone achieve it too.”

Bailey is joined by other members of NAMI who also have similar experiences and wish to give back.

Molly Satterfield and Peer Support Specialist Jeffrey Powell are both members of NAMI who previously went to get help from the organization when they were having their own hardships. Now they say they are repaying the favor to people who need help today.

Satterfield said she became a volunteer with NAMI after she received help from them when she had a mental breakdown that lasted for nearly two years. She said NAMI’s support group is where she went after moving to Sacramento to learn how to cope with her depression. 

Powell said he was diagnosed with post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and bipolar disorder. He also said his child was diagnosed with Schizophrenia, and NAMI’s family support group has offered them helpful resources for developing coping skills for their mental illnesses. 

“A sick mind can’t cure a sick mind,” Powell said. “We’ll be there for you every step of the way.” 

NAMI encourages students to attend their support groups at ARC and get the help they need. They meet on Tuesdays from 12:15 p.m.-1:45 p.m. and Wednesdays from 5:45 p.m.-7:15 p.m. in Community Room 1 in the Student Center.