When a loved one is in emotional or mental crisis it's difficult to know how to help and what the steps should be.
National Alliance on Mental Illness Treasure Valley provides a guide full of resources for your loved one, friends, and family members.
"Because of those groups, it saved my life," said Thomas Stafford, NAMI.
Stafford was attending college in rural Nevada when he started having mental health concerns.
"My mother had stage four metastatic breast cancer and she didn't have a lot of time to live, and I was also in the middle of my twenties and a lot of things were just crumbling down," said Stafford.
Through word of mouth, he found NAMI where he attended a peer support group.
"It doesn't really connect until somebody really tells you or you have that ‘ah-ha’ moment and you're like, ‘something's wrong.’"
Along with the help of board members of NAMI Treasure valley, the group put together an extensive resource guide.
One of those resources being where to find help for family members.
"As we all know it's very difficult to pinpoint one mental illness and try to treat the one mental illness--so I live with a variety of mental illnesses."
In the beginning of the guide, it asks a number of questions designed to guide you to possible resources.
They range anywhere from calling the 24/7 crisis hotline to calling the local non-emergency number to ask for a welfare check.
Stafford says a mental health issue should be treated the same as any other.
"When you break a bone, you get a cast or you get a surgery. When you break your brain or you have issues with that organ, you should just go get that help that you need and deserve. That way you can use your brain in the future instead of being negatively stigmatized because of your issue."
To download a full resource directory head to NAMI Treasure Valley
