Weekly Drop-In Support Group Thursdays

Freedom Center holds support and advocacy meetings every Thursday 7:00 to 9:00pm in downtown Northampton, 43 Center Street left side entrance up stairs second floor.  For more information read below or call 877-677-6424 or email info@freedom-center.org.  
 
Our meetings are open to people labeled with mental disorders, survivors of psychiatric abuse, and people struggling with extreme states of consciousness/suffering. Allies and supporters willing to share their personal experiences are also welcome (mental health staff allies are welcome but should contact us first).

We are based in Harm Reduction philosophy and support everyones' choice in their own recovery and lives as they define it for themselves: many Freedom Center members are currently taking psychiatric drugs, some are taking alcohol/recreational drugs, others are taking no drugs. We respect diversity, and emphasize the need to listen to people's own experiences as they understand and express them for themselves, free of intrusion or interpretation by authority figures, therapists, or doctors.
 
Our meetings begin with announcements, including Freedom Center activities and updates, and then whoever wants to can take time to share their feelings and experiences, talk about recovery and medications, get ideas and resources from the group, get help with specific advocacy needs if they are facing human rights abuses, share poetry and visions, or use their time in any way they feel they need to. This is a space free of judgement. We focus on listening, openness, and mutual respect, and people are welcome to ask for advice and feedback if that is what they want. We also provide accurate information about medications and alternatives to support informed choice. Please keep group safety and respect in mind if you are considering attending. Because we need to share limited group time, please be aware if others are waiting their turn. Feel free to call with any questions. You can download more info about the group in our meeting preamble.
 
Meetings are wheelchair accessible and near public transit. Because of chemical sensitivities, please do not wear fragrances.

Support Group Preamble for Freedom Center
Welcome to the Thursday night freedom center support group. Usually how this goes is we first say this intro, then we go around and people say their names if they want. Then we have time for brief anouncements, especially things the Freedom Center is working on. Then we open things up for people to take support
time. We usually have 2-3 facillitators, with one person taking the lead and the others filling in. This gives a chance for new people to learn facillitation skills. If there is a big need for some facillitation at some specific moment, everyone should feel free to speak up and help the group out. This way we all share responsibility for making the group work well.  If there are new people we want to welcome you and give you a chance to take
some support time or just say your interest and what brought you here. Don't feel obligated at all though. Also if there are people who need to leave early or who have a particularly urgent need to be addressed, let us know so the facillitator can keep you in mind.

This is a group of people who have been in the mental health system as patients,
experienced psychiatric abuse and mistreatment, or go through extreme states of
consciousness of some kind, and our allies. If you are unsure what an ally is or if you are a mental health staff person, please let us know so we can ma keyou familiar with the group.

The main point of the support group is that this is a place for listening with respect. If once a person has spoken you would like to ask a question or offer some feedback or advice, please ask the person if that is ok first. Some people just want to be heard, others want responses from the group. Likewise no one should feel obligated to speak, you are free to come here and be silent if that is what works for you.

It is important to remember that the foundation of the Freedom Center is self-determination. We respect a diversity of viewpoints and everyone doesn't have to agree. So if someone says something you disagree with or that you don't share their point of view, please remember that we are a diverse group with different perspectives. Many of us take psychiatric drugs, many do not, some of us use recreational drugs and alcohol, some of us do not, some of us have mainstream views and lifestyles and some of us do not. They key is to remember that we are all here to get support in our own search for what helps us to heal, recover, and thrive or however you want to define it for ourselves.

People who come here taking psych meds we will make a special effort to ensure that they have access to accurate information about their drugs, because so many people are not informed about the drugs they are taking. We will also make sure that people are aware of alternate views of treatment that are out there beyond mainstream treatments so they have more options when they are making their own choices.

This is also a time for people to get help with advocacy needs, human rights violations, resource referals, and anything else. People are welcome to use their time any way they want, in the past people have read poetry, shared songs, talked about dream and movies, or talked about political views and theories. One last thing, is that we do have limited time, and often a lto of people need to speak, so the facillitators might ask you if you can keep in mind that others are waiting their turn, to keep track of time and move on to the next person.

Also we want to remind you that Freedom Center is a work in progress and we are always open to feedback of what did or did not work for you. Please feel free to speak to someone or email or phone with any concerns. Also please give us contact info like phone and email so we can keep in touch.