The comments below were read by Karen Galinkin at the beginning of the NAMI Basics Teacher Training in Denver Colorado. Dr. and Mrs. Galinkin named NAMI Arapahoe Douglas as the recipient of memorials in memory of their 14 year old son Zac who died by suicide in December 2014. When asked what the family wanted done with the almost $10,000 in donations, they said they wanted NAMI Basics brought to the community to try and help other families.

NAMI August 1, 2015

The money for this program was raised in memory of my son Zac Galinkin, who killed himself December 16, 2014. He was 14 years old. He was smart, funny, kind, caring of others and a gifted musician and poet, to name a few of his characteristics. He was also mentally ill. Today I want to speak on the mental illness.

I have learned that you can do everything possible to help a mentally ill child and still have the end result of suicide. We took Zac to hospitals and doctors, psychiatrists and therapists, residential treatment, the list goes on and on. Through all of that there was never anyone there for us the parents and family. We had supportive friends and family, but none of them really knew or understood what we were going through. No one was really able to advise us. I felt that we were reinventing the wheel as if no one had ever done this before.

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I got involved with nami at the age of 18. They have helped me a lot since then. I have made new friends with NAMI. It is nice to know that I am not alone. Before I joined I always felt like no one cared, They took that feeling away and made me feel safe, and I believe we need more programs like NAMI. I was born with post traumatic stress disorder, and am also mentally disabled in other more severe ways. NAMI showed me that I don’t need to be afraid I just need to believe in myself. I need to be myself. They showed me that there are people who care and always will care. Anyway that’s my story. I know it may seem short but its as true as they come. Thanks NAMI for teaching me that there are people who care.

I am currently involved with NAMI, and, I have to say, I love me some NAMI! They not only help me in everyday life is a part of my being, but also to enjoy and treasure any knowledge of my illness that I receive. My soul and heart also fills with joy every time a newcomer to NAMI experiences the same.

I had the pleasure of taking a NAMI Family-to-Family course that felt like a college course. Not because it was difficult or boring but because it obtained so much structure and information. I learned about depression, schizophrenia and bipolar disorders to name a few illnesses. I also learned about many more and had the chance to meet beautiful people that were attempting to recover, reaching for hope and looking for help. I never felt judged. I enjoyed fresh food during our classes, had great speakers that sang, and was overwhelmed by the sense of community. The stigma did not reach through the doors. I became stronger as a parent and mother.

I have been involved with NAMI Stark County, Ohio, for over eight years now. Prior to that, I saw myself as a victim (of the illnesses themselves, of the stigma attached to these labels, and of the healthcare system). Diagnosed in 1992, my first hospitalization involved being strapped down for hours; left in a padded room with nothing but a camera on me (which wasn’t legal, but I didn’t know that then.) Soon after came two suicide attempts. I was very despondent about having to drop out of college to find myself now labeled, “crazy,” by society.

My mindset moved from being a victim to a “Survivor” when I re-enrolled in college in 1998. My medications were working, but not great. It took a long time to graduate, due to numerous dropped classes when the stress exacerbated my symptoms.

Today, however, I am a “Thriver.” Between my medication, nine years of therapy, and keeping my body and mind on the same schedule each day; I am happy to report that I now hold a job for NAMI. I am paid to help others like me, and their support networks, better navigate their ways through everything that changes due to their illnesses. NAMI profoundly changed my outlook on life — now I pay it forward.   

Hi everyone! I suffer from Adjustment Disorder and Borderline Personality Disorder. I started helping NAMI after going to my first Connection meeting. I didn’t want to sit down, but the facilitator compelled me to sit. I haven’t looked back since. I now facilitate Connection meetings here in Portland, Oregon. I volunteer 1 day a week to facilitate a morning group and an afternoon group on Tuesday’s. I have been doing this now for about 2 years. I also still go to my Saturday group where it all started for me.

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I have tried, off and on, for two years to find a support group in my area, have left messages for the local NAMI representatives in the brochures I’ve come across… emailed people… and no one seems to be able to get back to me with information.   This is my feedback: That it needs to be clearer where the meetings are and what days.  It’s hard enough to be able to get anything even started with mental illness… not to mention continuing to try when there is no response.

Thanks for your time.

Thank you NAMI for being there.  Thank you Phyllis Arends, then the Executive Director for South Dakota for getting myself and my partner, Timothy Flaskamp involved in starting a Connections Recovery Support Group.  Since  almost 5 years ago, Tim and I have become “In Our Own Voice” Presenters and Trainers also.  I had onset at 42, with a Bipolar Disorder, a PTSD, and a Panic Disorder.  All the while, fighting with a back injury. 

After the second surgery, I was told I was terminal.  Yes, the therapist had her work cut out for me, and TIm’s support and understanding was crucial. Oh, and Yes, I am in the best relationship of my life, a gay one with a remarkable man, who himself could be called “Mayo Clinic’s Miracle Man”.  I was overweight, diabetic and the Doctor said a gastric bypass would be the answer as she had to get the weight off me right now. 

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I am stoic, but it hasn’t been easy. My family has victimized me so, do people on the streets where I live. I have taken F2F and peer support groups and have been a facilitator for NAMI Connections Recovery support group for almost 2 yrs. We have a hard life in our city but I stand up for myself. I’m ready to go back to school or work hopefully as a peer support specialists. I was denied the job because I don’t have transportation…that is a work in progress I pray…the bus is not easy to take but now I see the youth and I would love to work with them and become a Youth Counselor!..I was trained at a day care center to teach an Autism child. That was fun :-). I am 29 and still have no kids. I’ll see what the future holds. Peace O:-) love and happeness!