Depression Sufferer Sets Up Cornwall’s First Women Only Support Group
She Said Cornwall is a place women suffering with mental health issues can meet to discuss their difficulties
A woman who has for years battled her own demons is urging any women suffering from mental health difficulties to join together to talk about their problems.
Michelle Barker has lived with depression all her life and has now launched a community support group offering women a place to come together and share their everyday mental health worries.
The sessions named She Said Cornwall, have so far proved productive but Michelle is keen to encourage more women to get involved, saying that nobody will be judged and everyone welcomed with open arms.
Michelle, 49, from Camborne , said: She Said Cornwall was an idea that blossomed into my head out of a place of darkness and desperation. Struggling with mental health myself, I found I felt isolated and alone with no support groups to help me through my battles.
From this I decided to set up She Said Cornwall. My hope for this page is to bring women together provide a safe space for us to listen to each other and feel less alone.
The group is run by my daughter and I, a very small team doing our utmost to fill the void that Cornish mental health services sadly have.
We feel proud and privileged to be on this journey and hope that our users will use the groups we set up and gain the benefits of talking and sharing
Meetings so far have covered lots from anxiety to depression and learning to live with mental health issues.
The Four Major Dimensions Of Recovery:
Anxiety & Depression Support Group
Functioning with anxiety and depression can be difficult. Without the proper support and tools, people often feel isolated and negative about themselves and their environments. Participants will connect with other individuals who are going through similar struggles, learn emotional regulation skills, expand coping skills, connect with resources to help reinforce group themes, explore self-care practices, and talk openly in a safe environment.
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Women Can Share Their Feelings
People who suffer from addiction bottle emotions up inside. They either refrain from expressing their feelings or express them in ways that are damaging. A support group offers a safe environment where a woman can talk about her thoughts and feelings without being judged.
A support group also provides accountability. Other people in the group can act as a sounding board, where they either confirm or challenge someones thoughts. When everyone in the group is sharing, others can learn different perspectives. As a result, the group grows together.
Womens Support Groups: Group Coaching
Moving up the ladder of womens support groups, group coaching is less structured, especially in its agenda. It differs from group therapy because members help to create the agenda, rather than the therapist alone setting the agenda.
Unlike group therapy and support groups, the focus tends to be on the present and future, with little exploration of past issues. Depending on the nature of the coaching group, members may be encouraged to share whatever is coming up for them, past, present or future. However, in a coaching group it is unlikely time will be spent delving into these issues.
-Coaching, either individually or in groups, is considered a co-created process.
Group coaching focuses on mining the wisdom of both individual members and the group as a whole. The group coachs role is collaborative, a partner rather than an expert.
According to the International Coaching Federation, coaching honors the client as the expert on her life and work, and believes that every client is creative, resourceful and whole.
Traditionally, group coaching has been goal-oriented and accountability-oriented. However, in recent years, coaching has expanded to embrace more open/less rigid definitions of goals and accountability.
-Jennifer Britton, author of Effective Group Coaching, notes the importance of peer learning
-Frequently, the coach will guide the group in activities or assign homework.
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Starting A Support Group
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Living with HIV can be challenging. For some, it can be helpful to find the support of others living with HIV through support groups, peer counseling, or places like our A Girl Like Me blog, which is an online community of support. Others prefer to be more private, confiding only in a few close friends. Either approach is fine, as long as it helps you.
Anxiety Support Group For Women Virtual
Topics addressed: Anxiety, coping skills, self-esteem
Description: âA virtual support group for women struggling with anxiety. Isolation has reached a new high. For some of us, it’s a comfort not to have to go out into the world and interact with others, but this can also mean a set-back in progress made prior to the pandemic. Join us for a virtual facilitated anxiety support group for women to strengthen your network, your skills and your resolve to overcome anxiety symptoms that have held you back from living the life you dream of. You are not alone. And we can do this together!â
Host: Noelle Nevins, Pre-Licensed Professional, MA CMHC, NCC, LPCA
When: Wednesdays 7:30-8:30
Contact: Email Noelle Nevins or call 242-8095
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Who Should Use Support Groups
Support groups are offered as a space where individuals can come together to share their stories, experiences, and lives in a way that helps reduce isolation and loneliness. Oftentimes, we think we are struggling alone, but support groups help us see that there are others who may dealing with similar situations and who in turn can help us get better.
Support groups are open to anyone, but they are often focused on specific topics . So, take some time and do some research to find the right one for you and your current situation.
Finding the right support group can be helpful. Do not be discouraged if the first support group you find doesn’t quite feel right. You should feel comfortable in the support group space that you choose, so trying different ones may help you determine the best fit.
We also encourage you to also take a look at Mental Health America’s LiveYourLifeWell program to learn more about the value of connecting with others and other helpful wellness tools.
Best Local: Depression And Bipolar Support Alliance
Depression and Bipolar Support Alliance
For those interested in finding a local, face-to-face support group for depression, the Depression and Bipolar Support Alliance has a complete directory where individuals can search by state or even non-U.S. locations.
While the DBSA connects individuals with local, in-person support communities, many of these groups will also use online meeting tools, social media, and email to communicate with individuals and families to provide resources and support.
The main purpose of DBSA support groups is to create a safe space for people to share their experiences and offer support. Meetings typically consist of general information, educational presentations, support group sharing, and individual sharing. They provide educational information and aim to promote understanding and reduce stigma. Each one has a medical advisor who can be contacted to answer specific questions.
Meetings are free and there is no cost to become a DBSA member. However, donations are accepted at each meeting to cover administrative costs. In most cases, there are no fees to join the support groups listed in the DBSA directory, but it is best to check with local support groups individually about associated costs.
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Where Can I Find A Support Group To Attend Locally
Your local Mental Health America affiliate is an excellent resource to assist you in finding support groups in your area.
The National Mental Health Consumers’ Self-Help Group Clearinghouse also maintains a Directory of Consumer-Driven Services which includes peer-run organizations throughout the United States that offer a variety of supportive services and activities, including peer-run support groups.
Adaa Online Support Group
The Anxiety and Depression Association of America has its own anonymous, peer-to-peer support group with over 60,000 subscribers. People use the platform to share their stories, ask for advice, and seek out people with similar experiences. Though its primarily focused on anxiety and depression, many people also discuss OCD, ADHD, PTSD, and other co-occurring disorders. You can participate on your desktop or download the iOS app for iPhones here.
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What Happens At A Support Group
Sitting and talking isn’t the only thing that happens at meetings. Lots of groups organise social events and arrange special activities to help boost your mood and improve your wellbeing.
Going to a group for the first time can be daunting, but you can be sure of a warm welcome. People will understand how hard it can be to take that first step.
If The Following Sounds Like You You’re Not Alone
Do you experience excessive unrealistic worry, unexplained sadness, loss of a zeal for life?
Are you feeling isolated, hopeless and helpless?
Perhaps you have a loss of appetite, experience disrupted sleeping patterns, or even thoughts of harming yourself?
Depression and mood disorders are diagnosed more often in women than men.
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Womens Support Groups: Group Therapy
Group therapy is on the bottom rung of the ladder, because it is the most structured and enduring. In other words, its been around a long time.
In fact, Irvin Yalom literally wrote the book on group therapy, with The Theory and Practice of Group Psychotherapy, originally published in 1970.
-Modern group therapy has been greatly influenced by Yaloms theories and methodologies.
In particular, he identified 11 therapeutic factors that are critical to the effectiveness of group therapy:
- instillation of hope
- existential factors
-Group therapy is usually delivered in a face-to-face setting.
Although many types of womens support groups are delivered in alternative formats , Ive yet to see group therapy delivered any other way than in-person in real time.
Meeting in-person fits best with the sometimes intense group therapy environment. Members may be processing trauma, challenges and/or difficult symptoms, as they develop new coping, relational and life skills. So the presence of an in-person leader is critical for a safe group experience.
According to the Womens Center, the content of therapy group sessions often leaves members feeling vulnerable, in order to ensure that the group remains safe and confined, members are discouraged from outside communication.
-Group therapy leaders facilitate therapeutic progress.
Womens Support Groups: Womens Circles
As we get to the top of the ladder of womens support groups, we find the newest of womens groupsthe womens circledefined in varying ways by a number of different writers.
Happily, we can look to Jean Shinoda Bolen for deeper insight into the nature of womens circles. She is a Jungian analyst and author of The Millionth Circle who believes that, When women come together and make a commitment to each otherthey are creating a vessel of healing and transformation for themselves, and a vehicle for change in their world.
-Shinoda Bolen writes eloquently of the invisible power of circling up with other women
The intention to be in a circle with a spiritual center invites the invisible world of spirit or soul to be in the center of the circle and in the center of the psyche of each person in the circle. Through meditative silence or silent prayer, wisdom and peace enters. Circles foster both the ability to voice what matters and say out loud what is in the heart and mind, and an equally important ability, to listen with compassion. Circles evoke a sense of sisterhood, and also a feeling of being in a maternal space. There is a deep sense of being connected to one another, at an archetypal level.
-Participants in womens circles often engage together in shared, transformative experiences.
-Womens circle facilitators come from many different backgrounds and professions.
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Support Groups Promote Healthy Relationships
The stigma of relationships between women is often unhealthy. The media often portrays women as being competitive and mean toward one another. While this may be true in some situations, women can also be supportive of one another.
Rehab programs in CO provide womens support groups to teach women how to show support and love for one another. This practice is especially important, as it breaks down the social barriers often created by addiction. How do women offer comfort for one another in support groups?
- Learning how to listen and not just talk
- Learning how to listen without judging
- Sharing feelings with other women openly and honestly
- Developing empathy for other women
- Reversing the perception that other women are competition
- Leaning on other women for support and encouragement
Creating The Right Atmosphere
It is important to ensure that your support group provides a space that is safe, confidential, and welcoming. Try to create a non-judgmental atmosphere where participants, both old and new, feel comfortable sharing their feelings. It can help to explain what confidentiality means to all members so that all participants have the same understanding and expectations for privacy. This is especially important for people living with HIV, since disclosing one’s status can have negative effects and is often an emotionally challenging thing for people to do. In fact, one of the roles of a support group is to provide a safe space in which people can talk about living with HIV without having to be concerned about possible negative consequences.
Sharing experiences allows members to give each other support, and to exchange practical information and ways of coping. It also allows participants to understand themselves better through the insights of others.
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What Are Women Support Groups
A womens support group gathers women dealing with similar issues and who come together to share their concerns. They can provide support, encouragement, and comfort to the other group members by sharing experiences, and they receive the same in return.
It could be dealing with a specific medical condition, such as cancer or dementia, a mental health issue, such as depression, anxiety, grief, or addiction, or providing care for a family member or friend dealing with a medical or mental health condition.
Does Group Therapy Work For Depression
Yes. Group therapy does work for depression. A study was conducted in 2018, where the researchers reviewed various literature and came to a conclusion about the effectiveness of support groups.
The study found that there is a long line of evidence that support groups do help, hence proving the efficacy of support groups.
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Coping With Separation & Divorce Therapy Group
A group of women create a supportive environment to address the challenges of facing or healing from separation and divorce. This group offers a space for connection and growth. There is a focus on formulating and implementing personal strategies for dealing with the emotional and situational changes of this life experience.
Do Support Groups Work
A study was conducted in 2018, where the researchers reviewed various literature and came to a conclusion about the effectiveness of support groups.
The study was conducted with the aim to update and consolidate the knowledge and the evidence for the effectiveness of mental health support groups.
The study found that there is a long line of evidence that support groups do help, hence proving the efficacy of support groups. The review also identified the reasons for the success of the support groups which includes:
- peer leadership
- Professional facilitation or co-facilitation
- Use of manualized programs
They also stated that the support groups field would grow from further research on whether people with mental illnesses use other types of community groups for support and how it helps in comparison to traditional support groups.
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Virtual Womens Circle: Trauma
Topics addressed: Trauma and PTSD, womenâs issues
Description: âAn evening hour virtual women’s trauma group: Whether you juggle a busy schedule, prioritize ease and accessibility, or prefer healing from the comfort of your home, virtual groups certainly have their advantages . If you’re interested in journeying to personal empowerment, diving deeper within yourself, and finding connection with others… this women’s circle is for you!â
Host: Jackie Vermaat, MS, LPC
When: Wednesdays 1-2 p.m. or Wednesdays 5-6 p.m.
Cost, if any: Unspecified
Contact: Email Jackie Vermaat or call 724-4194
What To Expect From Womens Support Groups At The Mental Health Center Of San Diego
All womens support groups are there to lend a hand. That is an unavoidable fact. And regardless of the type of group or the setting, all groups tend to go through a similar progression.
While different names know the stages depending on which expert you consult, the most well-known are the group development tasks or phases, which include the following functions or steps:
Forming: This entails coming together and getting to know one another.Storming: This is a heated debate where participants challenge one another and the facilitator.Norming: This entails reaching a consensus and cooperation.Performing: Here, the group takes on a life of its own and functions as a cohesive unit.Adjourning: This means transitioning from one state to another it also means acknowledging one another.
Keep in mind that maintaining confidentiality is one of the most important characteristics of group support, regardless of the stage of the groups development. The group members must feel safe in their surroundings, and they must agree that what is said in the group stays in the group.
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