Peer Support
For Mental Health Carers
Having someone you can confide in is a healthy exercise that helps with taking care not only of your mental health but also of your social and emotional wellbeing. Carers of individuals experiencing mental health challenges may feel overwhelmed, stressed and isolated. To help carers rejuvenate the state of their mental health, peer support or understanding and advice from people going through the same experience is necessary.
At HelpingMinds, we provide peer support services and conduct peer support activities for mental health carers in Perth, Western Australia.
What is Peer Support for Mental Health Carers?
When you are supporting someone through their journey of mental challenges and recovery, life can also be challenging for you, especially if you do not know how to help and ease the pain of your loved one. When things become difficult, it can also be hard to know where to seek help or know what help is available. Sometimes talking with someone who has lived through or experienced a similar situation can help ease your fears and concerns. This can help you realise that you are not alone and that there are other people going through the same thing that also requires your advice and comfort.
Peer support workers for carers are individuals who care for a friend or family member with a mental health issue and can support you by understanding the challenges you face. As experienced peers, they can also provide advice, especially if they have overcome certain challenges that you are now facing.
HelpingMinds® understands the value of a lived experience and employs Carer Peer Support Workers to support individuals who care for someone experiencing mental health challenges. Our Carer Peer Support Workers have gone through most of what you are going through and are ready to provide comfort and advice to help make your life better.
A shared connection with a peer can help you deal with what it’s been like to care for someone starting from when the signs first appeared to getting the medical diagnosis and going through the treatment plan for your loved one. With peer support for mental health, you can talk about topics that you may find hard to discuss with other people such as:
- what it is like when you get that diagnosis
- the frustration when you are trying to get support for your loved one
- the feeling of tip-toeing around the patient
- what it is like trying to deal with difficult behaviours
- the feeling you are to blame or being blamed for their condition
- what it is like to hide the issues from friends, family and work
- the feeling of loss and grief (emotional distance between you and your loved one)
- the conflicting emotions that relate to the caring role
- what it is like to have to call the authorities
Join the Peer Support Program in Perth
HelpingMinds® is an NDIS provider which offers free mental health support services to the family and friends of people living with mental ill-health across WA. One such project of ours is the Carer Peer Support Program which aims to connect carers with similar experiences to find comfort, carer and understanding within one another.
With our team based in Midland, Carnarvon, Geraldton and Broome our Peer Support projects, as well as our other educational programs, are accessible to surrounding suburbs, including the City of Swan, Gascoyne, Midwest and Kimberley. While we hold many of our programs and workshops at HelpingMinds’ offices, several are held outside since we believe that the right environment can greatly help facilitate conversation. When you join the Peer Support program in Perth, you can find yourself walking by the beach or having a picnic in the park while sharing experiences with other peers and discussing how to cope with being affected by mental health issues.
For more information about HelpingMinds’ Peer Support program in Perth, please get in touch with us on (08) 9427 7100 or send us an online enquiry. Individuals interested to be a Carer Peer Support Worker can also get in touch with us through the same contact information.
“It has been a light switched on for me knowing there are people and organisations there to help after many years.”