What is peer support and how can it help improve mental health?
GETTING MENTAL HEALTH HELP FROM PEOPLE WHO HAVE BEEN THERE
By Jackie Menjivar
(Papaioannou Kostas / Unsplash)
The peer-led mental health movement is revolutionizing how we approach treatment for mental health conditions. Peer support emphasizes both healing and social justice, showcasing the resilience of people living with mental health conditions and empowering them to be a part of other people’s recovery.
Here’s what you need to know about peer support — what it is, why it matters, and how you can find a program near you.
What is peer support?
According to peer support specialist Lorne Wood, peer support is “providing mental health services from a lens of lived experience.” Through peer support, people living with a mental health condition can get help from someone who’s experienced the same or similar.
A peer is usually someone who’s learned to manage and heal from their own mental health condition, and they now support other people in their recovery. Their expertise comes mostly from lived experience, but they may also get formal training or certification.
A peer support relationship can look different depending on the person or program, but a peer support worker may:
Teach specific skills
Provide emotional support
Offer encouragement or advice
Share their own experiences to inspire hope
Connect people with tools and resources
Help create crisis plans or roadmaps for recovery
What types of peer support programs exist?
Peer support can happen one-on-one or in group settings, and it can be in person, online, or over the phone. Some facilities may have their own peer support programs, including hospitals, drop-in mental health centers, prisons, or rehabilitation centers. You can also find peer support programs specific to certain communities like youth, LGBTQ+, and BIPOC.
How does peer support help your mental health?
You can achieve so much more when you feel supported by and connected with other people. Peer support helps people feel less alone in their experiences, which sets a strong foundation for healing.
“The most fundamental part of peer support is human connection.”
“It’s normalizing people’s reactions to their trauma without trivializing or minimizing those experiences. It’s relating to people on a human level,” says Wood.
Beyond just teaching the practical skills for managing your mental health condition on a daily basis, peer support workers also provide ongoing social and emotional support to help you stay connected. Peer support has been shown to:
Reduce hospitalization and inpatient care.
Increase community engagement and social functioning.
Improve whole health, including chronic conditions like diabetes.
Improve quality of life (employment, confidence, symptom management, etc.).
Why does peer support matter?
“One of the most important parts of peer support is this idea of offering care and presence and often just bearing witness to someone’s experience and what’s happening without always having to put a label on it or rush to medicate someone’s experience away,” says Founding Director of Project LETS, Stefanie Lyn Kaufman-Mthimkhulu.
“Peer support saved my life. My peers never put me in a cage. They listened to me. They understood me. They taught me.”
Many peer support workers are people who have survived abuse from the mental health system (for example: mistreatment within psychiatric hospitals or discrimination from mental health professionals). Peer support doesn’t depend on state-sanctioned systems, and it empowers people living with mental health conditions to use their lived experience to support healing — both for themselves and other people.
“Peer support is actually very radical in nature, challenging the very nature of the mental health system and things like forced treatment. So many of us have been taught that the only answer if someone is struggling or having a mental health crisis is to call 911 — despite the fact that people are dying, particularly Black, Brown, Indigenous, and disabled people who need help and support,” says Kaufman-Mthimkhulu. “Peer support is getting back to those roots and really thinking about what’s gone wrong with our system.”
How can I find a peer support program in my community?
The easiest way is probably to do some research online. Start by searching: “[your city or county]” “peer support program” or “peer support services.“ Mental Health America also has a (non-exhaustive) list of peer programs and services around the country.
You can also ask around your community. Reach out to a local mental health organization or a mental health professional. If you’re on a college campus, contact your office of student services.
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Peer support teaches us that your lived experience isn’t something to be ashamed of — it can empower you and inspire hope for recovery. It’s just one way that you can get involved in mental health advocacy.
If you’re passionate about mental health and want to do something about it, start with these seven steps to become a mental health advocate.