The United States is home to a wide range of mental health organizations and charities that are dedicated to promoting mental health and understanding mental illness. From the American Psychiatric Association, which is the largest psychiatric organization in the world, to Sista Afya Community Mental Wellness, which focuses on the experience of black women, these organizations are working hard to ensure that everyone has access to the resources they need. The American Psychiatric Association (APA), founded in 1844, is the largest psychiatric organization in the world. It is a specialty medical society that represents more than 36,000 psychiatric doctors from the United States and around the world.
The APA provides services to these doctors so that they can provide the best level of care to their patients, and also has an entire section of its website dedicated to patients and their families. DBSA, or Depression and Bipolar Support Alliance, is an organization that supports people with mood disorders. It provides education, support, help and hope to improve the lives of more than 21 million people living with depression and bipolar disorders. This large group is led by peers or people who also live with mood disorders, and has chapters in all 50 states in the US.
SARDAA, or Schizophrenia and Related Disorders Alliance of America, is dedicated to improving the lives of Americans living with psychotic disorders. An important component of this organization is the Alliance for Schizophrenia, a self-help group with headquarters in 31 states, Canada, Mexico, Brazil, Venezuela, France and India. The National Federation of Families for Children's Mental Health (NFFCMH) is run by families for families. It has more than 120 national chapters and state organizations, as well as an online presence.
This is an advocacy group dedicated to improving policies, legislation and systems to benefit families and children with emotional, behavioral, or mental health needs. Anyone in crisis can contact the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline for help and connect with a living person at any time. People can talk to a real person about their experiences and receive resources by calling 1-800-273-8255, or they can chat with a real person via the Lifeline chat if they prefer this method over the phone. Trans Lifeline is a hotline and microgrant organization run by transgender people to support the trans population. The hotline is a crisis service whose operators directly understand the callers, empathize with them and relate to them.
Their hotline, 1-877-565-8860, is always open but only ensures that operators are immediately available during certain hours. WHO Mind participates in specific projects and creates policies to promote mental health services for all. The organization is a go-to source for information on a wide variety of age-specific mental health and learning disorders. The National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH), part of the National Institutes of Health (NIH), is the main federal agency for mental health research since it funds research and conducts its own studies. Its inaugural innovation is called Shout 85285 which is a confidential and free 24-hour texting service for people facing a mental health crisis. JED Foundation works in partnership with high schools and universities to empower adolescents and young adults with skills by encouraging community awareness, understanding, and action for the mental health of young adults.
OK2TALK was created to encourage young people to talk about mental health issues as it can be difficult to talk about them. Rethink Mental Illness works around the world and online to equip more than seven billion people with better health including mental health and well-being. NAMI or National Alliance on Mental Illness began as a small group of families gathered around the kitchen table in 1979 and has become the country's leading voice on mental health. NAMI provides educational initiatives such as FAMILY-TO-FAMILY NAMI class which serves to support families of people with mental illness or their NAMI Homefront class which works with families of military service members and veterans who have mental health problems. As highlighted by WHO (World Health Organization), people who live with serious mental health problems die prematurely up to 2 decades earlier. Sista Afya Community Mental Wellness offers low-cost mental wellness services in the Chicago area and beyond focusing on the experience of black women.
