youth mental health support groups

Our bi-weekly Saturday Peer Mental Health Support groups (Rising Together) seek to improve the overall mental well-being of youth through empathetic, holistic and trauma-informed conversation. Our groups adopt a person-centered approach to navigating through the circumstances and things that impact our mental health. Participants are open to interact with a community of other peers who may have been through similar circumstances,  while they learn coping strategies, gain insight and listen to others express the feelings and emotions surrounding their mental well-being. Participants are also welcome to just listen to others share, without contributing themselves, which could also be a very helpful process. In a nutshell, peer support is having a supportive conversation with others in a similar situation.

 Our Peer Support Groups are open to young people age 16-24 years old, who are seeking person-centered care through conversation. Participants can chat about things happening in their life, ask questions, express their emotions, or simply listen to others. Participants do not need to have any particular diagnosis or specific mental health experience in order to attend; peer support groups are open to everyone, no referrals are needed, though participants are asked to sign up for each session in advance. 

Support groups are facilitated by trained Peer Support Facilitators. Our facilitators have living/lived experience of navigating their own mental health challenges, and are now in a position of wellness to contribute towards supporting others. Having been through a recovery journey themselves, Peer Support Facilitators are able to inspire hope and self-worth as they assist others. Our Peer Support Facilitators attend a 32-hour training session which covers principles of peer support, empathetic communication, active listening and so much more. All Peer Support Facilitators also shadow other experienced facilitators prior to leading groups on their own. 

 Please note that while we will take every effort to protect the privacy of our participants, through an online setting we cannot guarantee this, and by joining our groups you accept these conditions. We kindly request that participants do their best to find a private space when logging in for sessions, and refrain from recording any moment of the session. If you have any questions regarding privacy during the group, please feel free to reach out to us at rebeccaj@youthrisingabove.org. 

 Offering groups that are safe and positively impactful towards our participants is of utmost importance to us. We strive to ensure that everyone participating in our Peer Support Groups receives a worthwhile and welcoming experience. Our groups include opportunities for our participants to provide regular feedback to ensure we can continuously improve. All our facilitators are also expected to attend regular monthly Community of Practice (COP) meetings in which they can gain new skills and discuss ways to improve our services. Participants in need of advance mental health care, beyond what we are able to offer are also supported through referrals to appropriate services.

 Groups occur on a bi-weekly basis on the 1st and 3rd Saturdays every month. Sessions usually last up to two hours (but depending on the level of conversation, may be shorter), with a 10 minute break half way through. Participants are welcome to the leave the group session early should they wish.