Most people would agree that it makes sense that a person should have the right to make their own decisions and control their own life. But what happens when those rights are potentially violated by systems seemingly beyond their control? It’s normal for members of marginalized groups, whose rights may have been violated, to experience helplessness and hopelessness. However, it is important to remember that all individuals are resilient and they have a voice. This article details steps to exercise individual power through advocacy.
A good first step is to learn who your legislators are. You can search for this information by visiting The Maryland State Board of Elections website and looking up your voting location. After you use your address to look up your voting center, you will also be able to find contact information for your U.S. Representative, Maryland U.S. Senators, Maryland State Delegate, and Maryland State Senator.
Getting started can be overwhelming. There are often many bills to consider. Sometimes it’s hard to know which bills to pay attention to or how to interpret them. Another step towards getting more involved in advocacy efforts is to find advocacy organizations who support causes that are important to you. There is power in numbers, and partnering with an advocacy organization is a great way to get your voice heard.
Help in the Home has more than 16 years of experience collaborating with mental health advocacy organizations. We seek out opportunities to advocate for mental health policy change because a client’s right to self determination is a major ethical consideration for us as mental health professionals. Some of our favorite mental health advocacy organizations are Treatment Advocacy Center (TAC), Schizophrenia and Psychosis Action Alliance (S&PAA), and The National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI). Taking steps towards actively advocating can be as simple as signing up for the newsletter of an advocacy organization and responding to their requests for written or oral testimony. Often, these advocacy organizations will guide you on which bills to support and create easy to use templates for you to submit to your legislators. Some even offer training opportunities to help you practice what to say and how to say it if you are interested in providing oral testimony. This can really take the guess work out of what to pay attention to, what to say, and who to send your support to.
Advocacy can also look like participating in an event that brings awareness to an issue that’s important to you. It isn’t limited to trying to create or change policy. It can be helping to fundraise for an important cause or calling out injustices in your community on a grassroots level. It could also be engaging in a peaceful demonstration. One of our favorite events to participate in every year is the NAMI Montgomery County MD NAMIWalks. We love this event because it’s an amazing opportunity to bring our clients out into the community and fundraise for the valuable free mental health resources that NAMI offers in Montgomery County.
Advocacy is an important part of our culture at Help in the Home. All of our staff are required to participate in at least one advocacy effort per year in support of legislation that will help make our society a more inclusive place for people with complex mental health needs. If you or your loved one could benefit from partnering with mental health experts who have experience in advocating for mental health needs and navigating complex mental health care systems, please call 866-967-9994 to schedule your free consultation.
Start living life to the fullest with the help of our caring and dedicated team. To schedule your free consultation, fill out this short form or give us a call at (866) 967-9994.