Community Hope hosted the Annual Forum on Mental Health on Friday, May 2, 2008 at the Morris County Public Safety Training Academy.

The Forum is an annual educational event promoting wellness and recovery for health care professionals; individuals with mental illness; their family members and caregivers. The Forum is also open to the public.

The theme of this year’s event was “Healing Lies Within: An Introspective View of Mental Health Recovery” with the keynote address delivered by national and international speaker Amy Long. She received several diagnoses during treatment in the mental health system years ago and will speak of her efforts to regain her voice and take charge of her own recovery.

Long has worked as a Psychiatric Nurse for the past 20 years in both community mental health settings and on inpatient units. Today she is an Educator/Trainer for the National Empowerment Center and works part-time as the Assistant Director of Riverside Career Services, a Supported Employment Program. She is one of the founders of Bridges of Hope, a supportive network for Consumers working as Providers.

Other workshops included the reintegration benefits of employment; stress reduction skills and the importance of relationships and connections with peers and professionals in the recovery process.