Peer Support

Peer support is when people use their own experiences to help each other.

There are different types of peer support, but they all involve both giving and receiving support. This could be sharing knowledge or providing emotional support, social interaction or practical help. Everyone’s experiences are treated as equally important and no-one is more of an expert than anyone else.

How much help you give and receive will depend on what feels right for you at different times.

Research shows that peer support can improve people’s wellbeing, meaning they have larger support networks, and better self-esteem, confidence and social skills.

 

Peer Support Role

Peer support workers engage in a wide range of activities. These include:

  • Advocating for people in recovery

  • Sharing resources and building skills

  • Building community and relationships

  • Leading recovery groups

  • Mentoring and setting goals

Peer support roles may also extend to the following:

  • Providing services and/or training

  • Supervising other peer workers

  • Developing resources

  • Administering programs or agencies

  • Educating the public and policymakers

 

Who Are Peer Workers?

Peer support workers are people who have been successful in the recovery process who help others experiencing similar situations. Through shared understanding, respect, and mutual empowerment, peer support workers help people become and stay engaged in the recovery process and reduce the likelihood of relapse. Peer support services can effectively extend the reach of treatment beyond the clinical setting into the everyday environment of those seeking a successful, sustained recovery process.

 

The role of a peer support worker complements, but does not duplicate or replace the roles of therapists, case managers, ad other members of a treatment team. Peer support workers bring their own personal knowledge of what it is like to live and thrive with mental health conditions and substance use disorders. They support people’s progress towards recovery and self-determined lives by sharing vital experiential information and real examples of the power of recovery. The sense of mutuality created through thoughtful sharing of experience is influential in modeling recovery and offering hope (Davidson, Bellamy, Guy, & Miller, 2012).