No one takes the journey alone. We provide multiple opportunities for peer gatherings, one-on-one mentoring and personal growth.
The stigma of mental illness has an isolating effect on those it touches. We break through the loneliness on a daily basis with programs that reach the individual and open up a community of support. Peer-run drop-in centers promote independence and revitalization through self-governed activities. People with personal experiences with mental illness facilitate groups that cover such topics as self-advocacy, self-care, relapse prevention and stigma busting. Individual support is available as well for adults, older adults and transitional age youth.
TMHA also participates in multi-agency collaboration that provides 24/7 support services where and when they are needed. Staff teams are fully integrated to give each individual a range of choices and help them decide on a recovery process. Services include psychiatric care, housing assistance, substance abuse recovery, health, financial, education, employment and social support options.
Outreach
In Our Own Voice is a presentation format that equips individuals with mental illness to share their stories with others. This multi-media, interactive, public education program is intended for all audiences, including family members, health providers, law enforcement, faith communities, community or civic organizations and consumer groups. Click here to learn more about NAMI's In Our Own Voice program.
Stamp Out Stigma (SOS) is a consumer-driven advocacy and educational outreach program designed to make positive changes in the public perception of mental illness and inform the community about the personal, social, economic and political challenges faced by people living with mental illness. SOS presentations consist of 1-6 presenters who share personal experiences of living with mental illness, relating their own experiences of stigma and how they have worked to change the negative societal perceptions. Presentations are interactive.
The Peer Advisory Advocacy Team was recently created to work together with our communities and the Mental Health Departments of San Luis Obispo and Santa Barbara Counties and Transitions-Mental Health Association to enhance the mental health system, educate the community and reduce stigma.
Support
Are you feeling hopeless, desperate or alone? Are you concerned for someone you care about? Call SLO Hotline 1.800.549.4499. It’s San Luis Obispo County's suicide prevention, mental health and emotional support phone line. Confidential. Free of charge. 24 hours of every day. Visit the SLO Hotline's web page.
Transitions-Mental Health Association offers peer support groups run by and for people with mental illness. The groups provide peer-to-peer interaction, the sharing of stories, education and a sense of community. Currently groups are run in Arroyo Grande, San Luis Obispo, and Atascadero. Please call for locations and times.
Run entirely by peers – people in mental health recovery – Santa Maria and Lompoc Recovery Learning Communities provide a combination of wellness and recovery-oriented services in comfortable, supportive meeting places. Open throughout the week, the programs promote independence and revitalization through self-governed activities as members work toward recovery.
Peer-to-Peer: any person with serious mental illness who is interested in establishing and maintaining wellness can take this nine-week course (two hours per week) developed by the National Alliance for Mental Illness (NAMI). The course uses a combination of lecture, interactive exercises and structured group processes to explore recovery. Click here to learn more about NAMI's In Our Own Voice program.
TMHA Mental Health Advocates have experience living with a mental illness and know how difficult the journey to recovery can be. Advocates serve as links to community resources and guides on the journey to living mentally well. Call the TMHA front office to be linked to an advocate at 805.541.5144, and dial "0."
Intensive Services
The Emergency Shelter Clinician offers individualized therapy, case management and referrals for homeless people with mental health and/or drug and alcohol addiction problems. Services are provided by TMHA in cooperation with Good Samaritan Services, County of Santa Barbara Alcohol Drug and Mental Health Services and other local agencies.
San Luis Obispo County Full Service Partnership is an MHSA program that provides 24/7 intensive community-based wrap around services to help people in recovery live independently. Program participants are assisted in their efforts to gain the skills needed to make choices that reflect their own values, preferences, and goals; supports are developed to meet each person's needs and to empower each individual to attain their highest level of independence possible.
Vida Nueva (also known as Lompoc ACT) is an assertive community treatment (ACT) model-based program in Lompoc. As an ACT model program with a staff functioning as a team, Vida Nueva engages with adults, older adults and transitional age youth with serious and persistent mental illness. Rather than brokering services, the Vida Nueva team provides treatment, support and rehabilitation services in the community with a "whatever it takes" approach.
A less-intensive program than the two listed above, Santa Maria Supported Housing Services provides supportive services to help people in recovery live independently. Adults and older adults who currently have their own housing receive services and support in their homes and within the immediate community.
Resources
Mary Ellen Copeland Recovery Center
California Network of Mental Health Clients
