Peer Support Workshop

To teach participants skills in supporting their peers, particularly in mental health and emotional challenges. Most suited to small groups (3-10 participants) but could be adapted to larger groups.

1. Supplies
2. Plan
3. Resources

Supplies

• Large paper / flip chart paper
• Markers

Plan

1. Have everyone sat around the large piece of paper, with pens in the middle so anyone may access them.
   • As you explain things, you can write them on the paper, perhaps in a “mindmap” structure.
   • You can also tell participants they are free to draw and write things on the paper as you go.
2. Explain what peer support is
   • You may have encountered the idea of “self care”, ways to look after yourself especially when times are hard, and while I agree that it is a very important thing, I find it incomplete on its own.
   • When someone really needs care, they may not be able to do it themselves, inevitably in life there are times when we rely on the support of the people around us.
   • There is very little discussion on how best to look after each other when we need support. We are other left stumbling around in the dark doing our best to do right by our loved ones, but not knowing what that is.
   • Everyone’s needs are individual and unique, but we can learn more about how best to approach situations where people need support.
3. Overarching principals
   • Peer support means working with someone not on them.
     • Your role is not to “fix” or change people. You are not their therapist, and you shouldn’t try to be.
     • Your role is to listen, comfort, and offer the support that the person wants you to offer.
   • Interdependence
     • Peers are equal to each other. One day you may support your friend, on another day you may be the one in need of support.
     • The support should be reciprocal, not always one person supporting the other.
     • It’s ideal to have wide support networks.
       • If two people depend on only each other, they can easily lose all composure if one or both of them need a lot of support.
       • In a wide support network, people can share the load of supporting each other so no one gets burnt out or left behind.
   • Focus on the feelings, not the symptoms
     • If you perceive that someone is hurting themself in their actions, it may be tempting to tell them to stop. However, these actions are expressions of their feeling, and likely not the root cause.
       • It may be an important coping mechanism
       • Preventing them from doing it, or making them feel pressure to stop (in a way that makes them feel guilt / shame) may make them worse.
     • Therefore, focus on what has gotten them to a state where they feel the need to do the behaviour, rather than on the behaviour itself (within reason, consider what the level of risk is either way)
4. Strategies
   • Ask participants “What ways do you already know to support your friends?”
     • have them write their ideas on the paper.
   • Active Listening
     • Ask participants “has anyone heard of active listening before?” if yes, ask them to explain what they know.
     • Active listening is about giving a person space to say what they need to say, and making them feel heard, respected, and validated.
     • Active listening strategies
       • Ask open questions (as opposed to yes/no)
       • When they finish saying something, summarise and repeat it back to them.
         • This shows them that you are paying full attention, and creates an opportunity to recognise whether you have understood them correctly.
       • Name emotions that you recognise in what they say.
       • Remember people are complex and contradictory.
   • Buddy system
     • It’s a good rule of thumb to try and do peer support in groups of three
       1. The person being supported
       2. Someone supporting 1
       3. Someone taking a break / supporting 2
     • 2 & 3 can periodically swap so that they each get an opportunity to recharge from supporting 1. This helps people not get burnt out or overtired.
   • RAISED
     • This is an acronym to help you remember to consider everything that is relevant to supporting people. You can think of these in any order, but “Risk” always comes first. You should also continually reassess risk for as long as the support goes on for.
       • Risk
         • Ask participants “what risks could there be when doing peer support?” and “who might be at risk”
           • Risk to yourself
           • Risk to the person being supported
           • Risk to others
           • Physical
           • Emotional
         • For any risks participants come up with, ask them “how can you make the situation safer?”
         • Ask participants “What level of risk would make you decide to is not safe for you to support someone?”
           • Violence
           • Topics you find triggering
         • Ask participants “If you decided it was no longer safe for you to support someone, how would you go about leaving the situation?”
           • Maybe there is someone else that you or the other person can get to support
           • Once you are away, consider what you might need in order to decompress as that may have been stressful for you.
       • Affect
         • What mood the is person in
         • Do you know anything about their life that might contribute to their current state?
       • In & Out
         • Physical needs are rarely the root cause of a crisis, but they can exacerbate existing stress to the point of overwhelm
         • Ask participants “what physical needs might be contributing to a persons state of crisis?”
           • Water
           • Food
           • Medication
           • Need to toilet
         • Trying to force or heavily pressure someone to do any of this is likely to make them more stressed, but you can ask them if they need any of these things, and you can bring them food, drink, and meds, letting them know that those things are available if they need them.
       • Stressors
         • Consider what stressors in the persons life are making the situation worse
           • Friends
           • Family life
           • School/work
           • Sleep
           • Finances
           • Politics
         • Use your knowledge and ask open questions
         • It’s generally not helpful to launch into problem solving right away
       • Environment
         • Think of what you know about the person, and ask them questions about what they want in their space
         • Consider all five senses
           • Ask participants “what things in a persons environment might be contributing to their stress?”
             • Noise / people
             • Bright Lights
             • Unpleasant smells
             • Uncomfortable textures / furniture
           • Ask participants “what things in a person’s environment might be contributing to their comfort?”
             • Music they like
             • Finding a quiet space
             • Turning down the lights
             • Comfort / Stimmy objects.
       • Diagnosis
         • Do not attempt to make even a tentative diagnosis
         • If someone is telling you they have a diagnosis, consider what they may be trying to tell you with that. Ask them open questions about what their diagnosis means for them. For example:
           • “I am autistic” may be someone trying to say that sensory chaos is particularly stressful for them, you may ask them if this is the case and if there is any sensory stressor or comfort you can change for them
           • If someone tells you they have a mood disorder (Depression, Anxiety, Bipolar) They may be trying to tell you that their present heightened state is something that happens to them often, and maybe they already have insight into what they need. You may ask them “have you felt this way before?” “Do you know what helps when you feel this way?”
           • If someone tells you they are plural / have DID, they may be communicating that they have gaps in their memory, you may want to ask “Do you know where you are?” “Do you know who I am?” “Can you tell me anything about who you are?”
           • If someone takes medication for a diagnosis, their mentioning the diagnosis might prompt you to check if they have taken their medication, or if they need to take it
         • Don’t make assumptions based on diagnosis, listen to what the person tells you, ask them what their diagnosis means to them.
   • Ask participants if there is any area of peer support they would like to discuss further, and follow the conversation wherever it leads.

Resources

Peer Support Slide Show if you want to deliver this session as a presentation