Support Groups
Need help coping with the stresses of life? The Calhoun Times is running this column detailing support groups in the area.
The Life Choice Hospice Bereavement Support Group will be meeting the 2nd Tuesday of each month. The support group is open to anyone in the community who would like to attend. The office and support group are located at 189 Professional Court, Suite 300, Calhoun. For Information, contact Jennifer at 706-602-9001. “Grief shared is grief diminished.” – Rabbi Earl Grollman
The Calhoun Pregnancy Center Inc., located on the corner of Peters Street and East Belmont Drive, is open every Monday, Tuesday and Friday from noon until 4 p.m. Beginning Thursday, August 13, 2015, the center will be also open each Thursday from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday available by appointment only. Closed Wednesdays and Sundays. The pregnancy help center offers free pregnancy tests and Biblical lay counsel regarding abortion risks and procedures, development of the baby, adoption, sexual purity, and the risks of STDs. The center also offers practical helps for mom and baby with maternity and baby clothes, diapers and baby care products, and even some baby furniture when available. The center is pleased to announce that through its new project, “Baby Sleep Safely,” it will be offering new bassinets and cribs to loan out to parents in deepest need, returned and used again by more clients later. To visit the center, call 706-625-5768 to make an appointment. Walk-ins are always welcome during operating hours.
Narconon reminds families that abuse of addictive pharmaceutical drugs is on the rise. Learn to recognize the signs of drug abuse and get your loved ones help if they are at risk. Call Narconon for a free brochure on the signs of addiction for all types of drugs. Narconon also offers free screenings and referrals. 800431-1754 or Prescriptionabuse.org. ADDICTION COUNSELING- Narconon can help you take steps to overcome addiction in your family. Call today for free screenings or referrals. 800-431-1754
La Leche League of Calhoun and Rome offers free breastfeeding support and information. The meetings are open to all mothers (children also welcome), expectant mothers and women interested in breastfeeding. Calhoun location meets the second Monday of each month at 10 a.m. Rome location meets the third Tuesday of each month at 10 a.m. Leaders are available to answer questions. For more information, call Erin at 706-234-3980 or email at LLLCalhounRome@ gmail.com.
The Calhoun, Gordon County Parkinson’s Support Group will meet the fourth Tuesday of each month beginning at 6:30 p.m. in the Fellowship Hall of the First United Methodist Church, 205 E. Line St., Calhoun. This group is open to anyone living with Parkinson’s and their families. For more information, please call 706-413-3264.
Do you have a family member or friend with a mental illness, such as bipolar, depression, PTSD, or schizophre- nia? If so, the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) offers a FREE, 12week course that is full of helpful information about mental illness. Students learn how the brain operates and the way certain medications work, the different types of treatment, mental health services, ways to communicate better, and how to take care of yourself. The Family-To Family course is termed a best practice and NAMI is happy to offer it for the first time in Dalton at Crosspointe Christian Centre, 2681 Underwood Street, on Sundays this fall. For more information and to register call NAMI Rome at 706-5065010.
The Georgia Chapter of the Alzheimer’s Association is sponsoring a monthly support group for family and friends at Morning Pointe Assisted Living, 660 Jolly Road, on the third Tuesday of each month at 6 p.m. If anyone in the community would like to come, Morning Pointe will provide respite care while attending the meeting. For more information or directions, call Mary Braden 770-548-4683 or Karen Parrott 706-3465220. For more information about Alzheimer’s disease, call 800-272-3900 or 706-275-0819.
A support group for local residents with multiple sclerosis is being organized. If you have MS, are related to someone who does, or are caring for someone with MS, call Charles Smith at 706625-2752.
Special Care Plus, a free one-on-one consultation program, is offering assistance to primary caregivers of dementia patients. Each caregiver will receive basic information on the different stages of the disease; tips on caregiving techniques; nutritional information and home safety; information about programs such as Safe Return, which promotes wandering safety, and Caring Closet, which provides incontinent products for free; support group information, both local and telephone, which provide emotional and educational support; and referrals to other helping agencies and other resources which the care consultant determines necessary to meet the needs of each individual case. Any primary caregiver who is caring for a loved one with dementia and is still living at home is eligible to receive this program. The program includes three visits and a free instructional book. To learn more about this program, call Laurie Parker at 706-275-0819 or 800-272-3900.
The Georgia LongTerm Care Ombudsman Program seeks to improve the quality of life for residents of long-term care facilities. Ombudsmen investigate and work to resolve problems or complaints affecting long-term care facility residents; identify problem areas in long-term care and serve as advocates for change; provide information about longterm care and related services; promote resident, family, and community involvement in long-term care; educate the community about the needs of long-term care residents; coordinate efforts with other agencies concerned with long-term care, visit longterm care facilities routinely to talk to residents and monitor conditions; and educate facility staff about resident rights and other issues. For more information, call Linda Ann Daniel at 1-866-5658213 or 706-272-2158.
The Alzheimer’s Association’s Caring Closet was created to help offset the high cost of incontinent products and give the families support they often des- perately need. Once a month, family caregivers caring for their loved one with dementia still living at home visit the Closet and receive free items. If you would like to visit the nearest Closet, call the chapter office to receive a flier with locations and hours. Morning Pointe in Calhoun has a Caring Closet; call Mary Braden at 706-629-0777.
The Northwest Georgia Parkinson Disease Association, Inc. , is offering a monthly support group for persons living with Parkinson Disease, their caregivers, family and friends. The support group will meet at Gordon Hospital, Conference Room A. Refreshments will be served. There is no cost to attend the support group meeting. For any questions about the support group and future meetings, call James Trussell at 706-235-3164 or 706-346-5678.