2008 Affiliate President Conference Call Schedule Posted Calls will be held from 12:00 to 1:00 PM on the Thursday prior to the Board of Directors meetings/calls. 2008 Board of Directors Meeting Schedule Posted Family to Family Teacher calls: 2nd Wednesday of the month. If you would like to be on the call, please contact Lisa Moore at lmoore @namitexas.org.

The Ten Principles of Support

1. We acknowledge the fact that someone we love has a mental illness.
2. We accept that we have no control over this illness or the individual with the illness. We only have control over our own actions and thoughts.
3. We release all feelings of guilt concerning this mental illness for we are not to blame for the illness or its effects.
4. We understand and acknowledge that the mental illness has had an impact on all of our relationships.
5. We forgive ourselves for out mistakes we have made and we forgive others for wrong we feel have been committed against us.
6. We choose to be happy and healthy. We choose to return to a healthy focus on ourselves.
7. We keep our expectations for ourselves and for our mentally ill loved ones at realistic levels.
8. We believe that we have inner resources which will help us with our growth and will sustain us through crisis.
9. We acknowledge the strength and value of this support system and we commit ourselves to sustaining it for our benefit and the benefit of other families.
10. We acknowledge that there is a higher power to whom we will turn to nurture and strengthen our ability to release control over the things we cannot control.

Each one of the TEN PRINCIPLES, all written by family members, encourages an individual to understand and be forgiving and gentle with him or herself.

The first normal reaction of a family member to diagnosis of mental illness is denial and hoping against hope that it might really be something else. Families, if they are willing to accept any kind of support, need comfort and empathy for their confusion and pain. You will not see these families in your support group while they are in denial.

You will see that the first Principle deals with the acceptance that there is a mental illness.

Once a family member has accepted that this is a mental illness, there is often anger, guilt, depression, bargaining. When we are in the throes of this cycle, Principle 2 and 3 remind us of the need to "let go." These principle give us permission to let go and to not carry a burden of guilt about this illness or about actions we have taken because of the illness.

Principle 4 encourages us to acknowledge that our lives as a family have been changed and that every family member has been affected in his or her own way.

The fifth Principle urges us to forgive ourselves for whatever we have blamed ourselves for and to forgive others whom we feel have let us down or hurt us during this journey. These Principles also seem to help some family members cope with guilt and anger.

The sixth Principle is a message from all other families that it is okay to take care of yourself- to meet your own needs. It is a reminder that unless we are healthy, we can't take care of anyone else.

The seventh Principle offers good advice in reminding us to stay realistic about what we can do and what we should expect from our relative with the mental illness. When the Principle starts to make sense to an individual, he or she is on the way to acceptance and advocacy- the third Emotional Cycle.

Principle eight reminds us that we do have inner strength. We would not have survived to this point if we did not possess this core strength.

The ninth Principle asks that we reach out to help others as we are being helped. It is our call to action- to advocacy.

The tenth Principle reminds us that faith is a constant source of comfort and strength. It offers hope and reliance on others to get through even the worst of times.

These Principles individually or together can be gentle but powerful reminders that the mental illness does not need to consume us and all those around us.

To participate in a NAMI Texas support group, please contact the NAMI affiliate in your area.