Learn about the changes and development of the teen brain; how stress, drugs and alcohol affect the brain; and the significance for the development of emotional and substance abuse disorders at a community forum hosted by the Canton League of Women Voters and NAMI Farmington Valley.

Hilary P. Blumberg, M.D. professor of psychiatry in the Child Study Center and of diagnostic radiology, and director of the Mood Disorders Research Program at Yale School of Medicine, will speak at 6:30 p.m. Thurs. May 15 at the Canton Community Center (lower level), 40 Dyer Ave., Canton.

The Canton League of Women Voters recently concluded a year-long study of mental health resources in the Farmington Valley that found:

- Services that are currently available to valley residents are multiple and increasing, but are not available to all because of numerous obstacles;
- Barriers to receiving service are numerous and include lack of transportation, lack of insurance, a shortage of psychiatrists and more, and
- Solutions are possible. The report urges specific public and private measures that would increase access to care.

The report is available at http://canton.lwvconnecticut.org/news--events.html
 
NAMI Farmington Valley is an affiliate of the National Alliance on Mental Illness, a nonprofit grassroots organization working at the national, state and local community levels to improve the lives of people with mental illness and their families. The Farmington Valley chapter was founded in 2004 to respond to the mental health needs of the greater Farmington Valley community

The League of Women Voters is a nonpartisan political organization of men and women. It encourages informed and active participation in government, works to increase understanding of major public policy issues, and influences public policy through education and advocacy. See http://canton.lwvconnecticut.org/index.html for more information, including on joining the Canton League.