Diversity of beliefs and knowledge is a key element of peer support for male survivors of sexual abuse.

Adults who have been hospitalized for psychiatric problems may be less likely to be readmitted when they get support from other patients who went through similar experiences, a UK study suggests. Researchers followed 441 patients for one year after they were discharged from the hospital. All of them received personalContinue Reading

A counsellor was on hand and often had prepared a topic guide or exercise she wanted us to work through. At times we politely agreed. But mostly, all of us just wanted to talk—and listen—to each other, not really a professional. We have travelled such a distance together, these lastContinue Reading

https://www.tepou.co.nz/uploads/files/resource-assets/service-user-consumer-and-peer-workforce-guide-for-planners-and-funders.pdf Peer work benefits the people who use the service, the peer worker and the organisation. The formal evidence in both mental health and addiction is growing and shows high satisfaction from services that use all kinds of peer support as well as positive outcomes for people who receive peerContinue Reading

Extract: We are all social beings by nature – connectedness and community are necessary if not vital to our wellbeing. The very existence of positive social relationships can be a source of healing for many psychological wounds. Because sexual abuse and sexual assault occurs in relative secrecy – in aContinue Reading

https://www.psychiatrictimes.com/special-reports/revisiting-rationale-and-evidence-peer-support The rationale for peer support is neither new nor limited to psychiatry. Paid peer support has been around since the birth of the discipline in the late 18th century, with the hiring of recovered patients as staff identified as one of the most essential components of “moral treatment.”2 Harry StackContinue Reading

https://www.thestar.com/vancouver/2018/05/08/lived-experience-is-important-but-not-sufficient-in-mental-health-and-substance-use-support-say-experts.html Almost all of those employees have lived experience with mental health issues. And they have all been given training, said Anderson, that both encourages them to draw on their histories as a resource, and respects the challenges lived experience can present in the workplace. “It isn’t just about invitingContinue Reading