Statewide:

The Department of Mental Health Mental Retardation and Substance Abuse Services - DMHMRSAS is the branch of the Virginia State Government that allocates and funds mental health services provided by the state. This website provides extensive information about different types of services all over the state of Virginia, including Human Rights Commission offices and contacts for your region. This site will also help you locate and give contact information for your local community service board (CSB). http://www.dmhmrsas.virginia.gov/

Virginia Office for Protection and Advocacy- VOPA is Virginia's protection and Advocacy system serving people with any type of disability. VOPA gives resource guidance to individuals with disabilities who feel that they have been treated unfairly or discriminated against. They work in conjunction with the Protection and Advocacy for Individuals with Mental Illness' (PAIMI) Advisory Council. http://www.vopa.state.va.us/

Virginia Psychiatric Rehabilitation Association- VAPRA is a statewide organization committed to the psychiatric rehabilitation and recovery of those who have experienced a mental disability. http://www.vapra.org/

Virginia Association of Community Service Boards, Inc.- This organization represents community service boards and behavioral health authorities in Virginia and manages and oversees these entities. http://www.vacsb.org/

Mental Health America of Virginia- MHAV promotes advocacy, recovery and education about mental illness in Virginia. http://www.mhav.org/

National Alliance on Mental Illness of Virginia- NAMI VA is the state entity representing NAMI. This organization is dedicated to the eradication of mental illnesses and to the improvement of the quality of life for persons of all ages who are affected by mental illnesses. NAMI members and friends work to fulfill their mission by providing support, education, and advocacy. This organization offers events, trainings and news about state mental health issues. www.namivirginia.org.

Nationwide:

MedlinePlus- A service of the U.S. National Library of Medicine and the National Institutes of Health. This website is an extensive and all-encompassing guide to drugs (prescription, non-prescription, generic), supplements and herbal remedies. http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/druginformation.html

National Institute of Mental Health-  NIMH is the largest scientific organization in the world dedicated to research focused on the understanding, treatment, and prevention of mental disorders and the promotion of mental health. Their website contains research information on symptoms, diagnosis, and treatment of various mental illnesses. Included are brochures and information sheets, reports, press releases and fact sheets. http://www.nimh.nih.gov/

National Council on Disability- NCD is an independent federal agency and is composed of 15 members appointed by the President, by and with the advice and consent of the Senate. It provides advice to the President, Congress, and executive branch agencies to promote policies, programs, practices, and procedures that guarantee equal opportunity for all individuals with disabilities, regardless of the nature or severity of the disability and to empower individuals with disabilities to achieve economic self-sufficiency, independent living, and inclusion and integration into all aspects of society. This link connects to a paper that includes information about housing, employment and livable communities for people with psychiatric disabilities (the entire site can also be navigated from this link). http://www.ncd.gov/newsroom/publications/2008/LivableCommunities.html

American Psychological Association- The APA website offers an abundance of professional literature about several different types of psychological disorders. It provides a link to find a psychologist if you don't already have one or would like a different one; it also offers many other points of interest mainly geared towards psychological professionals. http://www.apa.org/

National Alliance on Mental Illness- NAMI is a nonprofit, grassroots, self-help, support and advocacy organization of consumers and families and friends of consumers. This page offers an array of information and related links. http://www.nami.org/

The National Association of Peer Specialists, Inc.- NAPS is a private, non-profit organization dedicated to peer support in mental health systems. This website offers information on the peer specialist movement and is setup to share ideas, strategies, and information about innovative programs that work. http://www.naops.org/

The National Consumers Self-Help Clearinghouse- NMHC Clearinghouse connects consumers to self-help and advocacy resources and offers expertise to and about peer-run programs.   http://www.mhselfhelp.org

The Abilities Fund- This site offers great online resources about business development for entrepreneurs with disabilities. www.abilitiesfund.org.

Depression and Bipolar Support Alliance- DBSA offers an array of information on Depression and Bipolar Disorder and provides information about support groups and related events all over the country. http://www.dbsalliance.org/site/PageServer?pagename=home

Schizophrenics Anonymous- This is a nationwide organization that promotes support group activity for Schizophrenia based on an already existing 6-step program. Please visit the website to find a group in your area or for information to start a group if you can't find one near you. http://sanonymous.com/

Anxiety Disorders Association of America-  ADAA provides an extensive source of information about several types of anxiety disorders, treatment options, support group information, etc. http://www.adaa.org/

National Eating Disorder Association- NEDA provides an array of information about the nature of eating disorders, including different types and the programs that are available to treat them. http://www.nationaleatingdisorders.org/p.asp?WebPage_ID=337

Breaking the Silence - Lesson plans, games and posters created to break the silence about mental illness in our schools. http://www.btslessonplans.org/

Recovery from Mental Illness- The Alaska Mental Health Consumer Web offers this page as a support resource for consumers in recovery. This page has many inspiring stories about consumers in recovery from several different types of mental illness. http://akmhcweb.org/recovery/rec.htm

The Law Project for Psychiatric Rights - is a non-profit, tax exempt public interest law firm whose mission is to mount a strategic legal campaign against forced psychiatric drugging and electroshock is the United Sates.   http://psychrights.org/index.htm      

The Campaign for Mental Health Reform- The Campaign for Mental Health Reform is a collaboration of 16 national health organizations, representing millions of Americans, to make mental health a national priority and early access, recovery and quality in mental health services the hallmarks of our nation’s mental health system. http://www.mhreform.org/

DISCLAIMER

This page is offered strictly for informational and support purposes.  We assume no liability whatsoever for any consequences arising out your use of information or connections provided through any of the above organizations. VOCAL does not necessarily agree with information provided by these organizations, their websites, members or other affiliations.