Serious mental illness (SMI) refers to conditions such as bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, or other forms of psychosis. Our SMI Peer Support service provides a safe space for those with SMI to come together to give and receive support from their peers. It also provides access to informative workshops focusing on the issues those with SMI face around their mental and physical health.
Serious Mental Illness is a term used to describe people living with bipolar disorder, schizophrenia and other psychoses. If you’re living with Serious Mental Illness, you may feel limited in your ability to perform essential life activities, such as going to work, having healthy relationships, and completing everyday tasks we often take for granted. Serious Mental Ill Health can lead to us feeling alone, fearful of the future and how to move forward and that nobody else can help. Peer support can mean that someone else is there. Sometimes simply ‘I get that…’ or ‘when I felt like that, I tried this, and it was really helpful’ can make a huge difference.
Peer support is a term used to describe where people with a similar lived experience come together to provide emotional, social or practical help to each other.
In Mind BLMK, this means that people who have experience of mental ill health can spend time together, connect, share experiences and ideas of what can help. This support can be really helpful for all involved – those supporting can feel helpful and involved and those being supported can feel less alone and understand that others have had similar experiences.
Trying to explain how things are to someone who has never experienced a mental health issue can be really tough – sometimes simply finding the words to describe what is happening can be impossible and can feel like wading through treacle. And when others don’t understand, it can lead to frustration.
When people have their own experiences, it can be much easier. People get it. They understand. They have often felt similar things themselves or can see where you’re coming from, even if it is different from them. This can be a huge relief.
Peer support is working together. Everyone is helping everyone – we can all feel empowered, build independence, increase our self-worth by knowing we are an important part of the support, even if often we say very little. And we know that even if we are the one being helped today, at some point we will be able to help someone else.
Structured 1-hour topic-based learning session covering a range of mental health and wellbeing-related topics such as anxiety management in clinical settings, setting manageable routines, food and mood, service navigation and building self-appreciation, followed by half an hour of grounding including meditation, mindful arts and crafts and board games. Sessions may also be peer-led or include guest speakers from other organisations and agencies.
Before you can access any of services you will need to complete a referral form and have a chat with one of our Peer Support Workers. This is so we can find out a little bit more about your needs and to make sure our services offer you the right kind of support. You can do this by clicking on the ‘Access Support’ button at the top right of this page.
Tuesday
Workshop and Grounding Group 16:00 – 17:30
Peer Support Group 18:00 – 19:30
Thursday
Online Peer Support group 12:30-14:00
Workshop and Grounding Group 14:30- 16:00
The groups will be led by a Peer Support Worker with lived experience of mental health and built-on shared personal experience and empathy with a focus on working towards wellbeing and recovery.
More information:
If you have any questions about peer support, please find the contact details below:
t: 0300 330 0648
e: hq@mind-blmk.org.uk
MindLine Trans+ is a confidential mental health support helpline for people who identify as trans, A gender, gender fluid, or non-binary.
Side by Side is a supportive online community where you can talk about your mental health and connect with others who understand what you are going through.
Find out more
Information and advice on a huge range of mental health topics from the national Mind website.
