Family and Caregiving Support Resources
The Mended Hearts program is a national peer-support program for patients who have cardiovascular disease, their caregivers and their families. Mended Hearts provides support and education, bringing awareness to issues that those living with heart disease face, and advocating to improve quality of life across the lifespan.
It includes Mended Little Hearts, which provides support to families of children with congenital heart defects (CHDs) or other heart conditions, and Young Mended Hearts, which supports young adults ages 18 to 55 who have heart disease, including CHDs.
Mended Little Hearts and St. Jude Medical partnered to create this digital resource guide for parents and caregivers of children with congenital heart disease or defects (CHD).
Medical professionals and parents worked together on this guide to provide accurate and honest information that addresses the tough feelings, questions and concerns parents and caregivers may have.
Go to The Mended Hearts, Inc. HeartGuides page and scroll down to see the Mended Little HeartGuide in English and Spanish.
Mental Health America of Illinois
Mental Health America of Illinois is a statewide organization that works to promote mental health, prevent mental disease and improve the care and treatment of those suffering from mental and emotional disorders. For more information go to www.mhai.org/.
Mental Health America’s Caregiving Resource Center
Mental Health America’s Caregiving Resource Center offers a comprehensive collection of caregiver mental health resources to help you protect your well-being, manage stress and navigate the challenges of caregiving.
It includes information on coping with caregiving stress, crisis planning, mental health resources for parents and caregiving resources on treatment and recovery.
Mental Health for Children With Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities
Navigate Life Texas, a project to inform and empower parents of children with disabilities or special healthcare needs, has a Mental Health for Children With Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities page. This page provides ideas on how to talk to your healthcare provider and the people working with your child if you think your child might be having mental health symptoms.
Mental Health Resources for Kids, Teens and Young Adults
The National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) has resources geared toward kids, teens and young adults. NAMI also provides a coloring and activity book and step-by-step guidance to help parents explore and talk to children about emotional topics or mental health challenges.Mercy Housing is a national nonprofit organization dedicated to providing affordable housing. Mercy Housing offers affordable rental properties in the Chicago area to low- and moderate-income families, seniors, and individuals with disabilities. Its programs include:
- Supportive housing for the formerly unhoused
- Transitional housing
- Permanent rental
- Affordable homeownership
Each Mercy Housing community has its own leasing office and its own application process. Use the search tool to find a list of communities and search by city. If you have general questions about low-income assistance, please contact the corporate office at (866) 338-0557.
Metropolitan Family Services provides a variety of services throughout Chicago, DuPage County, Evanston, Skokie and the southwest suburbs to help families learn, earn, heal and thrive. Metropolitan Family Services programs include:
- Early learning
- Afterschool
- Job readiness
- Counseling and mental health
- Legal assistance
Mid Central Community Action (MCCA) provides support, advocacy, and education for individuals and families in McLean and Livingston Counties. MCCA works to eliminate domestic violence, combat homelessness, and create a community hub for financial stability.
Midwest Food Bank of Illinois-Bloomington-Normal
Midwest Food Bank of Illinois-Bloomington-Normal provides food to nonprofit agencies across Central Illinois and beyond. Organizations include food pantries, homeless shelters, residential programs and children’s food programs. In an effort to serve more agencies, Midwest Food Bank offers volunteer opportunities and several off-site places where agencies can pick up food.
Midwest Food Bank of Illinois-Bloomington-Normal’s website also includes:
- Frequently asked questions about the food bank with more information
- Help with finding food resources in your area