Support Groups
Support groups can provide an important source of emotional and psychological benefit for patients, former patients and their friends and families.

At Cape Fear Valley Health System, we offer a variety of such groups to assist in the coping and healing process. 

Below, you'll find a complete listing of support and information groups for 2008. 

Alzheimer’s Caregivers
The Alzheimer’s  Caregiver Support Group, for those caring for loved ones with Alzheimer’s disease, meets on the third Tuesday of each month at Better Health of Cumberland County (1422 Bragg Blvd.). For more information, please call 615-1633.

Sleep Disorders
A.W.A.K.E., a support group for those with sleeping disorders and their family members, meets every third Tuesday in January, March, May, July, September and November from 6 to 7 p.m. at the Medical Arts Center in downtown Fayetteville (across from Highsmith-Rainey Specialty Hospital). For more information, please call (910) 615-6389.

Bereavement
The Bereavement Support Group of Cape Fear Valley Hospice meets in the Bordeaux Shopping Center Professional Center, Suite 203, at 1830 Owen Drive, on the first and third Thursdays of every month from noon to 2 p.m. The group is for those who are coping with the death of a loved one. For more information, please call 609-6710 or 689-2395.

Compassionate  Friends, a support group for families who have experienced the death of a child, meets on the first Tuesday of the month at 7:30 p.m. in the Cardinal Room at the Cape Fear Valley Education Center (3418 Village Drive, Fayetteville). For more information, please call Martha Lynch at (910) 245-3177.

The SHARE Bereavement Support Group meets the second Tuesday of each  month from 6 to 8 p.m. in the Dogwood and Pine Rooms of the Cape Fear Valley Education Center, located at 3418 Village Drive. SHARE is a self-help support group for parents who have lost babies through miscarriage, stillbirth, ectopic pregnancy or genetic abnormality, as well as newborn or infant deaths up to age one. Lori S. Farmer, RN, ARNP, MS, APNG(c), a local nurse genetic counselor and perinatal bereavement counselor, is the group’s coordinator. There is no cost to participate. Parents are welcome to come together, alone or with a friend or relative. For more information, please call CareLink at (910) 615-LINK (5465).

Brain Injury
The Fayetteville Brain Injury Support Group meets on the second Tuesday of each month at 6:30 p.m. in the Patient Dining Room at Cape Fear Valley Rehabilitation Center, located behind Cape Fear Valley Medical Center in Fayetteville. For more information, please call Ellen Morales at 486-1101.

Cancer
The Taking Charge Of Your Care Support Group, meets on the first Thursday of every month from 6 to 7:30 p.m. in the conference room at Cape Fear Valley Cancer Center. It is an educational group for cancer patients and their families or caregivers. Topics include information on community resources, stress management, fatigue, relationships and caregiving. There are opportunities at each meeting for sharing and support. The group is facilitated by a licensed social worker and is open to the public. For more information, please call the Oncology Social Worker at (910) 615-3849.

Facing Forward, a support group for women living with cancer, meets the second Tuesday of each month in the conference room at the Cape Fear Valley Cancer Center from 7 to 8:30 p.m. Facing Forward discusses cancer-related topics and issues dealing with women’s wellness in a supportive group setting. For more information, please call (910) 615-6337.

The Coming Together Children’s Support Group meets on the third Thursday of every month (except July, August and September) from 6 to 8 p.m. in the Cape Fear Valley Cancer Center conference room. The support group helps children whose parents are diagnosed with life-threatening illnesses, and is open to children ages 5 through 18. Parents are invited to attend and learn how they can best assist their children during this difficult time. Dinner will be served. Please call (910) 615-6337 to register of for more information.

Common Ground holds informative meetings for prostate cancer patients and their families, and serves as a forum for discussion of problems associated with being a prostate cancer survivor. They meet on the second Thursday of each month from 6 to 7 p.m. in the Cape Fear Valley Cancer Center conference room. For more information, please call (910) 615-4626.

The Look Good, Feel Better program meets on the third Monday of each month at 9 a.m. in the Cape Fear Valley Cancer Center conference room. Licensed cosmetologists help women with cancer learn how to apply make up and style wigs or scarves to compensate for the changes in the skin and hair that cancer treatment may cause. For more information, please call (910) 615-7618.

Heart
The Defibrillator Support Group meets on the second Thursday of January, April, July and October from 6:30 to 8 p.m. in Room 101 of the Medical Arts Center (101 Robeson St., Fayetteville). For more information, please contact Penny Hester at 615-6057.

The Women’s Heart Bypass Support Group meets on the third Thursday of every month at 4 p.m. in the Multipurpose Room at Cape Fear Valley HealthPlex, located at 1930 Skibo Road. For more information, please contact Clara Wilson at (910) 822-6824.

NICU Parents
The NICU Parent Support Group meets every Thursday from 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. on the fourth floor of Cape Fear Valley Medical Center in Room 432. The support group, which is for parents who currently have babies in the NICU, offers assistance, educational classes and creative activities. For more information, please call (910) 615-6545.

Spinal Cord Injury
The Spinal Cord Injury Support Group meets on the first Monday of each month at 6:30 p.m. in the lobby of Cape Fear Valley Rehabilitation Center, located directly behind Cape Fear Valley Medical Center. For more information, please contact James Jones at 615-4051.

Arthritis
The Arthritis Support Group meets on the fourth Monday of every month (except December) at 7 p.m. at Cape Fear Valley Rehabilitation Center, Auditorium Room A (located behind Cape Fear Valley Medical Center). For more information, please call (910) 488-9352.

Hepatitis & Chronic Liver Disease
The Hepatitis & Chronic Liver Disease support and education group meets on the third Wednesday of January, March, May, July, September and November at 6:30 p.m. in Suite 102 of the Medical Arts Center (101 Robeson St., Fayetteville). Those with hepatitis or liver disease, and their family members and friends, are invited to attend. The group is facilitated by a Registered Nurse. For more information, please contact Billie Kennedy at 864-7828.

Fibromyalgia & Chronic Fatigue
The Fibromyalgia and Chronic Fatigue Recovery and Support Group meets on the third Saturday of each month (except December) at 1:30 p.m. in the Multipurpose Room at HealthPlex, 1930 Skibo Road, Fayetteville. The group is open to those with fibromyalgia and chronic fatigue, as well as their family and friends. For more information, please call Margaret Silman at (910) 488-1228.

Parkinson’s Disease
The Parkinson’s Disease Support Group meets on the first Thursday of each month at 6:30 p.m. at Cape Fear Valley Rehabilitation Center, Auditorium Room D. Parkinson’s patients and their loved ones are invited for support and information about the disease. For more information, please call Paul Berghoff at (910) 323-3765.

Marfan Syndrome
The Marfan Support Group meets the last Saturday of every month from 2 to 5 p.m. in Cape Fear Valley Rehabilitation Center Auditorium B. For more information, please call Karen Moore at (910) 583-5518.

Bariatric (Weight Loss) Surgery

The Weight Loss Surgery Support Group meets at Village Surgical Associates at 1841 Quiet Cove, just off Boone Trail Extension, in Fayetteville. For more information, please contact Donna Carter at (910) 323-2626.