The In-Person Conference Returns
A Little Later than Planned, but, We Return, at Last!
GMHCN is return to St. Simons Island for the 2024 Annual Conference. Registration opens April 19, 20-24. Learn more.
Peer Support Recognized by Georgia General Assembly
Here is a clip from March 28, 2024, the final day of the 2024 legislative session in Georgia, when the Georgia General Assembly recognized the founding organizations who collaborated to create the first Medicaid-billable Certified Peer Specialist Training, including Sherry Jenkins Tucker and the Georgia Mental Health Consumer Network, on the occasion of the upcoming 25th anniversary of the first Georgia CPS Project Training #1
988 from the Peer Perspective
Please join GMHCN for a new series exploring 988. Throughout the three--part series we will be looking at the big picture as well as doing a deep dive on topics of special interest to peers. Our goal is for everyone (including the people who helped build the 988 system) to learn something new when participating in these webinars. We hope you will join us.
Register for April 29 now by clicking here.
The Georgia Mental Health Consumer Network believes in the ability of everyone living with mental health concerns to enjoy lives of purpose, meaning, productivity, and wellness. Since the first gathering of 30 behavioral health peers in October 1990, this grassroots nonprofit organization has been led and run by mental health peers—people in mental health recovery. GMHCN has evolved into a statewide organization of over 100 employees engaged in advocacy, education, training, and peer support services for the people of Georgia. GMHCN is recognized as a national leader in the peer support movement. At its core, the basis of peer support—one person using their lived experience to support another—is not new; in fact, it is the basis of human growth and development. Mental health peers with special training are now able to use their lived recovery experience in clinical settings to provide something beyond a diagnosis or medication. We provide the evidence that we can and do recover from our mental health challenges. We provide skills, tools, and above all, hope.
THE LIVING ROOM IS COMING
TO FULTON COUNTY
GMHCN will soon accomplish a long-sought opportunity: We will be providing peer support in Fulton County.
Read about our new partnership with Grady Health to provide peer support at the new Fulton Behavioral Health Crisis Center here.
JAMES e. TODD JR. TAKES THE LEAD AS THE NEW CEO OF GMHCN
Please join the staff of GMHCN in welcoming James E. Todd Jr. as our new Chief Executive Officer. Learn more about James and his appointment by the GMHCN Board of Directors. Click here.
Whole Health Action Management Is Back!
Georgia Certified Peer Specialists holding certifications in Mental Health and/or Addictive Disease will once again have the opportunity to become Whole Health and Wellness Coaches, in a unique collaboration between GMHCN and the National Council for Mental Wellbeing. Thanks to funding through the Georgia Department of Behavioral Health and Developmental Disabilities, this training is provided at no charge to eligible Georgia CPSs accepted into the training. Seating is limited, so please consider registering soon if you are planning to attend.
Click this link for more information on WHAM.
Click this link to register for a WHAM training.
The application period will close April 22, 2024 at 5:00pm, or when all available seats are taken, whichever happens first.
WHOLE HEALTH AND WELLNESS REMINDER
No matter the season, remembering to take care of the basics, such as sleeping well, eating healthy and balanced meals, drinking plenty of water, and getting fresh air, sunshine, and exercise, can help us to achieve and maintain our mental health recovery, no matter the storm any season may bring. To learn more about a Whole Health and Wellness approach to Mental Health Recovery, please call the Call the Peer2Peer Warm Line any time at 888-945-1414
Some Forms Are Harder Than Others
We are grateful for the Georgia Psychiatric Advance Directive, but it can be a little confusing, and sometimes even overwhelming for some of us. That is why GMHCN worked with a small group of some of our best and brightest colleagues and allies to provide some guidance to Georgia's peers and practitioners (and anyone else) interested in completing a PAD. Learn more.
Peer support for all Georgians, all the time.
Peer support for all Georgians, all the time.
Peer support for all Georgians, all the time.
Peer support for all Georgians, all the time.
1-888-945-1414
24/7/365
Peer2Peer Warm Line
We all need someone to talk to who can understand us, and is willing to listen. Our Certified Peer Specialists, who work out of our Peer Support, Wellness, and Respite Centers, are available day and night to share in your successes, and support you if you're struggling. Learn More
Central State Hospital in Milledgeville
Pictures of Central State Hospital's crumbling remains are popular on websites such as Atlas Obscura because of the disturbing portrait of humanity they portray. But they only tell a part of the story. The recitation of facts such as the number of pounds of meat, butter, and other foods consumed each day at Central State Hospital, and the way people confined there are described in "But for the Grace of God," paint a more complete picture, in an even more chilling way, of what this place, in that time, was really like. Learn more.
BUILDING A FUTURE
THAT LEARNS FROM THE PAST
GMHCN Chief Executive Officer James Todd is working closely with--and listening to--the lived experience of the network everywhere he goes. One of the voices closest and dearest to him is that of Goldie Mae Marks, Treasurer of the GMHCN Board of Directors and its longest-serving member.
See more pictures of the Board on Facebook here.
Employment @GMHCN
The Georgia Mental Health Consumer Network has full and part-time opportunities across the state. Whether you want to put your skills to work providing peer support in communities throughout the state, or provide administrative support behind the scenes, GMHCN has opportunities Learn More
Dual Recovery Is Real
Double Trouble in Recovery provides a safe and welcoming space for people living with substance use and other mental health concerns to achieve and maintain long-term recovery. DTR meetings happen online and in communities across Georgia. Learn more.
The Georgia CPS Project Training is the core training of GMHCN. It was launched with Cohort 1 in October 2002. It serves as the foundation upon which all peer support in Georgia--and 37 other states--is based. This landmark training continues to be the gold standard for peer support because of the rigorous attention paid to ensure its fidelity to the model: Developing person-centered, recovery-focused, trauma-informed, culturally-aware practices that are shared with program participants in ways that engage, connect, inform, and inspire. No matter the changes in the world around us, the Georgia CPS Project continues to lead by keeping its focus on what we can do next -- and how to do it best -- for Georgia's mental health recovery community. Click to learn more.
GMHCN's Online Calendar Has Returned!
To celebrate, we made a click-to-print calendar PDF that prints easily on 8.5"x11" paper. Click here to download a handy PDF.
If you have questions, suggestions, or corrections for our GMHCN Online Calendar, please contact us using the form at the bottom of this page.
THINKING ABOUT PROVIDING OR RECEIVING PEER SUPPORT? WANT TO KNOW MORE?
If you want to know more about peer support, please join us for Peer Support 101, in which we will discuss what a peer support specialist is, the application process, and what the Georgia CPS Project training is like.
Register for April 26 here.
THERE'S MORE TO COME!
Identifying a leader for organization is just one of the many important functions of a nonprofit organization. Join us to learn about the work that lies ahead.
Register for May 16 here.
Join Us for Easter!*
Spending holidays with people who understand us, and support our recovery and wellness, can make holidays feel like... holidays, and not something to dread. If you or someone you know is not looking forward to the holidays, and lives with a behavioral health concern, learn about how Georgia's Peer Support, Wellness, and Respite Centers can change how we perceive and anticipate the holiday season. Learn more.
*and New Year's Day, and Valentine's Day and St. Patrick's Day and Memorial Day...
Georgia's Home for Peer Support
GMHCN's Peer Support, Wellness, and Respite Centers connect Georgians in mental health recovery with the tools and resources we need to maintain our recovery and wellness, and to lead lives of purpose, meaning, and productivity in our communities.
Click here for an overview of respite, or learn more about each of the Centers in Augusta, Bartow County, Colquitt County, Decatur, and White County.
RESPECT Institute of Georgia
The RESPECT Institute of Georgia is a 3 ½ day in-person training or 4½ day online training program that empowers participants by acknowledging, by honoring, and by valuing their personal experiences and insights. Learn more.
PEER SUPPORT EVERYDAY!
Georgia’s Peer Support, Wellness, and Respite Centers provide recovery and wellness activities online daily. We have a variety of activities and facilitators, so there is always something new to experience.